D5 



STATE or MICHIGAN 

department af public Snstrurtfou 



LAN SI NG 



Language Lessons 



An Outline Sn^gestin^ Material and Methods for the 
Teaching of Lan^na^e in the Elementary Grades 



^ 



^BM 



BULLETIN NO. 30 



Published by 

The Superintendent of Public Instruction 

1919 



IWonoffrapfi 






•t B, 

^' 1920 



STATE OF MICMIGAN 

Srpartment 9f ^ublfc inBtturtfon 

L.ANSING 



Language Lessons 



An. Outline Sugiestin^ Material and Methods for the 
Teaching of Laxi^uaie in the IClementary Grades 



By 



NELLA DIETRICH 
Department of Public Instruction 



BULLETIN NO. 30 



Published by 

The Superintendent of Public Instruction 

1919 






UlEFvARY OF COMQRISS 






DOCUMENTS DIVISION 



STATE OF MICHIGAN 

S^jiartmrnt of l^nhlU 3ttBtrttrtliitt 

LANSING 



Probably the teaching of language taxes the teacher's versatility and 
resources more than any other subject. Much of the difficulty lies in the 
fact that the matter to be taught lacks in concreteness and definiteness. 
The outlines in this bulletin attempt to specify definite aims and suggest 
material and methods to attain them. The needs of the rural school 
teacher have been given especial consideration. However, it is hoped the 
outlines will be helpful to all teachers in the elementary grades. 

This bulletin will be furnished to superintendents and county commis- 
sioners on request. The exact number wanted should always be stated 
in ordering. 

Very truly, 



^^-L-iCl^^yy^AAj ^ . hm/w^-f^i/t-^^ 



Superintendent of Public Instruction. 
September 1,[1919. 



CONTENTS 

Page 

First Grade 9 

What to Do 9 

Material and Method (outline) 9 

Oral Work 10 

Original Composition 10 

Conversation lessons 10 

Observation reports 12 

Poem study 14 

Story reproduction 21 

Picture study 28 

Daily language drill 30 

Written Work 32 

Copying from model 32 

Name and address 35 

Second Grade - 36 

What to Do - -^ 36 

Material and Method (outline) 36 

Oral work 37 

Original composition 37 

Conversation lessons 37 

Observation reports 37 

Poem study 39 

Story reproduction 41 

Pictuie study 44 

Daily language drill 46 

Written Work 48 

Copying from model -__ 48 

Writing original sentences 52 

Third Grade 53 

What to Do 53 

Material and Method (outline) 53 

Oral Work 54 

Original Composition 54 

Conversation lessons 54 

Observation reports 57 

Oiiginal stories 59 

Description 60 

Poem study 62 

Story reproduction 66 

Picture study 69 

Daily language drill 71 



Written Work 73 

Copying from model 73 

Dictation exercises 74 

Original composition 75 

Letter-wri ting 75 

Ston'-writing___-_- 77 

Verse-writing 78 

Fourth Grade 80 

What to Do _'_ 80 

Material and ^Method (outline) !___ 80 

Oral Work - 81 

Original composition i 81 

Original stories 81 

Description 83 

Explanation 85 

Reports on current events 86 

Poem study 86 

Storv reproduction 88 

Pic ture study . 90 

Daily language drill .__ 92 

Written Work 93 

Copying from model 93 

Dictation exercises 94 

Reproducing stories in drama form 95 

Original composition 96 

Letter-wri ting 96 

Stoi y-wri ting 97 

Verse-writing_ __ 97 

Fifth Grade 98 

What to Do - 98 

Material and Method (outline) ._ 98 

Oral Work ._ 99 

Original composition 99 

Original stories . 99 

Description 101 

Explanation 104 

Reports on current events 104 

Poem study 104 

Story reproduction . 109 

Picture study 110 

Dailv language drill 111 

Written Work .. 112 

Copying from model 112 

Dictation exercises 113 

Reproduction of stories in drama form 113 

Original composition 113 

Letter- vriting 113 

Story-writing 115 

Description 116 

Explanation 117 

Keeping a class diary or journal 117 

Verse-writing . 117 



Page 

Sixth Grade 118 

What to Do 118 

Material and Method (outline) 118 

Oral Work : 120 

Original composition 120 

Oi iginal stories 120 

Description 122 

Explanation 124 

Poem study 124 

Story reproduction • 125 

Picture study 126 

Daily language drill 127 

Written Work 128 

Copying from model 128 

Dictation exercises 128 

Reproduction of stories in drama form 128 

Original composition 130 

Letter-writing 130 

Story-writing . 131 

Description 131 

Explanation , 131 

Keeping individual diaries 131 

Verse-writing__ 132 

Appendix 133 

Sources of poems • 135 

Sources of stories 135 

Books on story-telling for teachers 136 

Rooks on art for teachers 136 

Picture study helps 137 

Books for the teacher of language 138 

Morning prayer 138 



FIRST GRADE 

WHAT TO DO " 

1. Help the children to talk as freely in the language class as they do 
on the playground or at home. 

2. Insist upon short, clean-cut sentences. To this end eliminate 
"and," "so," "then," and other over used connectives. 

3. Establish as a habit a distinct speaking voice. 

4. Conduct a five minute language drill daily. 

MATERIAL AND METHOD 
Oral Work 

ORIGINAL COMPOSITION 

CONVERSATION LESSONS 

Free, spontaneous thought expressed in one or two complete statements. 

OBSERVATION REPORTS 

The reports at the end of the year to consist of not less than three 
simple, clean-cut sentences. 

POEM STUDY 

From twenty to thirty rhymes and poems studied during the year. 
Not less than one poem or rhyme memorized each m.onth. 

STORY REPRODUCTION 

Four stories to be read or told by the teacher each month. Two of 
these to be reproduced by the children. 

PICTURE STUDY 

Five masterpieces studied during the year. 

DAILY LANGUAGE DRILL 

Instituted not later than the second week of school and observed 
.rigidly every day of the year. 

Written Work 

COPYING FROM MODEL 

Reasonable skill attained in copying sentences from the teacher's 
model on the board, both with letter cards and by writing. Capitals 
always to be used at the beginning of a sentence with a period or ques- 
tion mark placed at the end. 

NAME AND ADDRESS 

Written legibly, properly capitalized and punctuated. 



10 
Oral Work 

ORIGINAL COMPOSITION 

CONVERSATION LESSONS 

Material 

Every autumn there are hundreds of Httle people who enter the doors of 
the public school for the first time in their lives. They are timid little folk 
just from the protection and security of the home. The very word school 
awes them. It is the teacher's privilege to get the confidence and trust 
of these wee people. She can do this in no better way than by tactfully 
and sympathetically correlating the home and the school. Informal 
conversation about their pets and toys at home, about their home duties, 
and about their brothers and sisters, fathers and mothers will help wonder- 
fully to develop a feeling of ease. The place on the program for the con- 
versations will be the language period, but it is unnecessary^ for the children 
to know that it is a language lesson. This type of language work should 
be used exclusively the first week or two. After that one lesson each week 
should be sufficient. 

The material for these lessons must be so close to the child's life and 
interests that every one in the class, including the most tim.id, will want 
to say something. There is suggested below a few topics that undoubtedly 
will be of interest to all the children. Besides this, each locality presents 
individual material that will furnish the best of subjects for conversation 
lessons. The teacher should make as much use as possible of that material. 

a. The home: what their mothers and fathers do while they are at 
school; their brothers and sisters — how many they have, their names, what 
they do, the baby's cunning ways; their toys; their pets and their animal 
friends; their small services in the home — setting the table, bringing in 
the wood, etc. 

5. Objects of interest in the schoolyard: the birds — their color, songs, 
and habits, etc.; the trees — the falling of the leaves in autumn and the 
budding of new ones in the spring ; the flowers in the flower garden and along 
the roadside; the weeds. 

c. The school : the games they like ; the field trips that the school makes ; 
the story that the teacher has read for morning exercises or told for previous 
language work; the picnic; the sociable; the entertainment. 

d. Special days and holidays: Hallowe'en, Thanksgiving Day, Christ- 
mas, St. Valentine's Day, Washington's and Lincoln's birthdays, Easter, 
and Memorial Day. 

e. Nature topics: the snow^ ice, the wind, the sun. 

/. The seasons and their characteristics. ' 

g. Simple facts in hygiene: why we should come to school with clean 

hands; why the teeth should be cleaned regularly; why each child should 

have his own cup. 

h. Manners: when to say Thank you. If you please, and Pardon me. 

Method 

Some first grade children are talkative but many of them are not, especi- 
ally the first few days. It requires considerable tact to restrain the former 
in such a manner that they do not feel rebuked and at the same time draw 
out the timid children without in any degree forcing them to talk. A 
wise choice of subject matter and careful questioning are the most effective 



11 



means of getting some response from all. Sitting informally in a circle 
always tends to keep down the barrier between teacher and pupils that often 
exists when the teacher sits apart from the children or stands before them. 
She should not be much concerned with the order and conciseness of w^hat 
is said the first few weeks, and criticism of English should be made very 
sparingly. Spontaneity and freedom, above all else, are to be desired in 
this grade. The errors in English should not be ignored by any means. 
Note of the most common ones should be made, and language drills and 
games based on them for regular daily drill. 

Some effort should be made to develop the "sentence sense." Unre- 
strained, children are inclined to attach sentence after sentence to one 
another by "and," "so," or "then." Work to eliminate these connectives. 
Short, clean-cut sentences are much stronger, much more to be desired. 

Model 

A CONVERSATION LESSON ON GEORGE WASHINGTON 

(The teacher's commands and questions are so stated that the children 
must answer in complete statements.) 

PupiVs part Teacher's part 

Yesterday was George Washing- 
ton's birthday. We did several 
things here in school to honor him. 
I want each of you to tell me * one 
(The children respond one after thing we did. 
the other as they think of some- 
thing to say.) 

Harry — ^We made George Wash- 
ington hats. 

Alice — You told us the story of 
George Washington. 

George — We looked at pictures of 
George Washington. 

Mamie — We made shields and 
hatchets. 

(She looks at Fern questioningly 
because she has not volunteered 
anything.) 

Don't you remember" that we 
sang songs yesterday? We said 
that one song was about George 
Washington. Can you tell us that? 



Fern — That's all we did. 



Fern — We sang a song about 
George Washington. 

George — -Because he was a soldier. 
Fern — He fought the Indians. 



Why did we make shields in 
honor of Washington? 

Harry said we made George 
Washington hats. How did we 
know what style to make, Alice? 



Alice — We made them look like 
those in the pictures. 

* This limits the talkative child and at the same time warns the timid 
and the lazy ones that they are expected to contribute their share. 



12 



Mamie — George Washington liked 
to play soldier. He was captain of 
the company. His mother made 
soldier caps for all the boys that 
played with him. 

Alice — (Glancing at the picture.) 
All men in those days wore long hair. 
George Washington tied his with a 
black ribbon. 

Harry — He wore short pants and 
white stockings. He had buckles 
on his slippers. 

George — ^When he was a little 
boy he always told the truth, and 
his mother knew he did and she 
trusted him. 

George — (The result after some 
endeavor.) When he was a little 
boy he always told the truth. His 
mother knew she could believe him. 

Fern — He fought a war for us. 
Harry — He is the Father of our 
Country. 



I would like to have each one 
of you tell me a short story about 
George Washington. Remember 
that a good story-teller never uses 
"and" very much. 



That is a splendid story. 



(Turning to George) Won't you 
tell us a story about George Wash- 
ington? 



That would have been a fine 
story if you had not used two "ands" ; 
they spoiled it. Let's try it again. 



Why do we honor his birthday 
in school? 



OBSERVATION REPORTS 

Material 

The child comes to school in an inquiring mind. "Why is this" and 
"How is that" are frequently on his lips. This desire to know the why 
and how of everything can be made use of splendidly in language work. 
Give him something to observe with the idea in mind that he is to tell the 
others in the class what he saw. Nature study is without doubt the best 
material for this work. 

Two lessons a month are sufficient when the work is first introduced. 
Later one a week can probably be easily handled. 

November : The sleeping habits of a pet. 

The sleeping habits of some other animal. 



13 



December: How do we know winter is coming? 

The number and location of trees in the community or on the 
road to school that retain their leaves all winter. (After 
this lesson, tell Why the Evergreen Trees keep their Leaves 
in Winter.) 

January: The eating habits of goldfish in a jar or the same habits of 
some pet. 
The blue jay or some other bird that remains north all winter — ■ 
where his home is in the winter and what he eats. 

February: In what ways does the sun help us? 
How do the moon and stars help us? 
Direction and strength of the wind. 

March: What does the wind do for us? 

The return of the robin — where and when first seen; what 

was he doing? 
What buds first appear — describe appearance. 

April : Appearance of first flower to be seen. 

Children observe teacher soak and plant seeds. Give report 

next day. 
The first appearance of the sprouting seed above the ground. 
Effect of light on the growing of seeds. 

May: Effect of heat on the growing of seeds. 

Effect of moisture on the growing of seeds. 
Markings of at least two different kinds of birds. 

June : A rainbow. 

June flowers. 

Method 

This type of lesson should not be introduced the first few weeks of 
school. The children should be familiar with the teacher's directions and 
able to respond readily in the conversation lesson before observation 
reports are attempted. 

Interest in the subject to be reported upon should be aroused in a con- 
versation lesson. After an object has been discussed in such a lesson, the 
children should be asked to observe it for a day or two. The reports 
(called a "story") could then be given. In many cases, no more than one 
sentence will be given at first. The two following were the best given in a 
class of seven members as their first "observation stories" the eighth week 
of school — "My pet hen sleeps with her head behind her wing" and "Jack's 
paw twitches when he sleeps," the topic being The Sleeping Habits of My 
Pet. 

Some such devices as the following may be helpful in aiding pupils to 
form the habit of observing : Have pupils close their eyes and tell you how 
many doors there are in the schoolroom, or point to them; have pupils pass 
to a window a moment and upon returning, tell what was seen ; have pupils 
close their eyes, then ask, "What is the color of my dress today?" "What 
is the color of Mary's?" Many devices may be invented to assist pupils 
to make accurate observations. 

Work to have short, clean-cut sentences given. Insist that "and" and 
"so" are used only sparingly. 



14 

Models 

a. (Teacher's assignment on Friday: Our language work for tvvo weeks 
has been on preparation for winter. Fall is leaving us and another season 
is coming. I wonder how many of you can tell us Monday two reasons 
why you know winter is coming. Look around at the birds, the squirrels, 
the sky, and the wind and you can surely give two reasons.) 

(1st child) Winter is coming. The winds are cold. Jack Frost bites 
my fingers. 

(2nd child) Winter is coming. The birds have left us. The leaves 
and flowers are all dead. 

b. (After observing the rainbow.) 

We looked at the rainbow yesterday. There are many colors in it. 
I liked the blue part best. 

(After this lesson the children will better appreciate the Bible story of 
the rainbow and the myth, 'Tris' Bridge.") 

c. (Result of observing effect of light on seeds.) 

We planted seeds in little boxes a long time ago. Little green leaves 
grew. We put them in the dark and they turned yellow. 

POEM STUDY 
Material 

Twenty or thirt\^ rhymes and poems are to be studied this year. Of 
that number at least one rhyme or poem should be memorized each month — 
more if those selected are short. Still others are to be read to the pupils. 
Poem study should begin with the Mother Goose and other nursery rhymes. 
Later longer poems are to be studied. Be sure the selection is always 
appropriate to the season. 

Mother Goose Rhymes Other Rhymes 

Little Boy Blue Bobby Shafto 

Jack and Jill The Man in the Moon *(1) 

The Old Woman Who Lived in a Mary Had a Little Lamb (9) 

Shoe Oats, Peas, Beans, and Barley 

Old Mother Hubbard ' Grow 

Little Miss Muffet Little Rhymes for Little Readers 

Hickorv^ Dickory Dock (11) 

Little Jack Horner If I Were a Queen (5) 

Tom, Tom, the Piper's Son This is the Way We Wash Our 

Hey Diddle Diddle Clothes 

Little Bo-Peep London Bridge 
Sing a Song of Sixpence 

Poems to be studied 

Morning Prayer (See page 1 38) 

The Cow* (4) (9) R. L. Stevenson 

Time to Rise (4) R. L. Stevenson 

The Swing (1) R. L. Stevenson 

Child's Thought of a Star (1) Jane Taylor 

The Stars (1) May M. Jackson 



* The numbers refer to Sources of Poems, page 135. 



15 

Jack Frost (13) Celia Thaxter 

Sleep Baby Sleep (3) (9) (10) (12) Unknown 

The Baby (9) (12) Geo. Macdonald 

Why Do Bells For Christmas Ring? (8) Lydia A. C. Ward 

Cradle Hymn (Away in a Manger) (8) (12) Martin Luther 

The First Christmas (13) Emilie Poulsson 

The Rock-A-Bye Lady (1) Eugene Field 

Wynken Blynken Nod (3) (6) (8) (12) Eugene Field 

The Three Little Kittens (12) Unknown 

Duty of Children (1) R. L. Stevenson 

Who Has Seen the Wind (1) Christina Rossetti 

The Rain (4) (9) (12) R. L. Stevenson 

Boats Sail on the River (5) (9) (12) Christina Rossetti 

Where Go the Boats R. L. Stevenson 

In the Heart of a Seed (1).--- K. L. Brown 

Stars and Daisies (1) . F. D. Sherman 

The Dew Drop (9) - F. D. Sherman 

Summer is Coming (1) Unknown 

My Shadow (1) R. L. Stevenson 

The Sunbeams (9) Emilie Poulsson 

The Robin's Nest (2) Geo. Cooper 

What Does Little Birdie Say (3) (8) (9) Alfred Tennyson 

Bed in Summer (1) R. L. Stevenson 

Poems to be read to the children 

The Story of the Creation — The Bible — Genesis I and 11:1 to 3. 

Psalms, 19, 1, 23 

Hiawatha's Childhood (9 — 3rd vol.) Longfellow 

The Children's Hour (1 — 3rd gd.) Longfellow 

The Raggedv Man (1) :___Riley 

A Bear Story (7) Riley 

A Visit from St. Nicholas (1) Moore 

Who Killed Cock Robin (9) (12) Mother Goose 

A Thanksgiving Fable (8) (2) Oliver Herford 

Method 

"The General method of teaching a poem is the same in all the grades: 
1. Preparation. 2. The Whole. 3. The Parts. 4. The New Whole. 
This method is the most natural. First of all the pupils' minds must be 
ready for a clear understanding of the poem when first presented; then, 
before they examine details, they must have an idea of the whole; after 
they examine details they need again an idea of the whole, richer now in 
meaning because of the analysis work. To begin with the study of parts 
or end with the study of parts is contrary to human nature and psycholog- 
ically incorrect." — Haliburton and Smith in Teaching Poetry in the Grades. 

The object of the Preparation as has been stated is to prepare the pupils' 
minds for a clear understanding of the poem. The teacher must secure 
the pupils' attention and get them thinking along the right line. This is 
best accomplished by telling a short, improvised story, or stating interest- 
ing facts that bear on the poem, or by asking a few pertinent questions. 

The second step. The Whole, Is entirely the teacher's part in the first 
and second grades. The poem is to be recited by her as a unit so the 



16 

children can get the story in the large. While this is being accomplished, 
incidentally two other things take place. The children derive enjoyment 
from the reading for they like the music of poetry and, secondly, they get 
training in the sound of a poem correctly given. This latter is important 
in that it gives the teacher opportunity to set a high standard in the recit- 
ing of poetry. She must devote sufficient time to the study of the poem 
and to practice in reading it to enable her to give it confidently, musically, 
and artistically. Children imitate unconsciously and their future read- 
ings of the poem can not be otherwise than modeled after the auditory 
impression made by the teacher. 

In studying The Parts it will be necessary to examine the poem, thought 
by thought or stanza by stanza. The amount of discussion and analysis 
that is attempted will be determined by the selection. All that will add 
to an understanding or appreciation of it should be given, and no more. 
The discussion should aim particularly to make the pictures stand out so 
that the children will learn to think of the poem as a series of pictures 
instead of a group of lines or stanzas. If there are difficult words in the 
selection it would be well to have them studied in the regular word study 
class the day before. 

In The New Whole, the teacher should recite the entire poem at least 
once more. It will have a fuller meaning for the children now, and their 
enjoyment should exceed that derived from previous readings. At this 
point they often show their appreciation by joining in with the teacher 
when she comes to a catchy phrase or a refrain-like repetition of the words 
or lines. Neither is it uncommon for a good teacher of poetry to hear 
this at the close of a recitation of a poem, "Say it again, Miss " 

Thorough study of a rhyme or poem after the plan explained above, 
should always precede memorization. When the teacher decides that a 
certain rhyme or poem is to be memorized, she may follow either of the two 
following plans; some poems lend themselves best to one plan, some to the 
other. 

1. Memorizing by the Whole: 

a. Recite poem twice, slowly. 

b. Repeat it having pupils follow as well as they can. 

c. Recite poem again slowly. 

d. Repeat again with pupils following. 

e. Repeat the parts that give the most difficulty and give 

individual help to those who need it. 
When this plan is used the memorization will be much more thorough 
if the teacher devotes to it a few minutes daily for several successive days 
rather than trying to get it all done in two or three full recitation periods. 

2. Memorizing by Parts: 

a. Recite first thought (or stanza). 

b. Have children repeat it in concert and individually. 

c. Work with individuals if any have difficulty with words or 

phrases. 

d. Recite second thought. 

e. Have children repeat it. 

f. Recite first and second thoughts. 

g. Have children repeat the two. 

Proceed in this way until entire poem is memorized. Do not attempt 
to teach too much in one day. 



17 

Models 

(In the lesson plans on the following pages, the four steps in the teaching 
of a poem previously mentioned have been combined under the two heads, 
Preparation and Presentation. 

One complete lesson has been planned for each of the following models. 
A lesson usually requires more than one recitation period. The first model 
will require at least two fifteen minute recitation periods ; the second, about 
three.) 



I . SING A SONG OF SIXPENCE 



Sing a song of sixpence, 
A pocket full of rye ; 

Four and twenty blackbirds 
Baked in a pie. 

When the pie was opened, 
The birds began to sing; 

Was not that a dainty dish 
To set before the king? 



The king was in his counting-house 

Counting out his money; 
The queen was in the parlor 

Eating bread and honey. 

The maid was in the garden, 

Hanging out the clothes; 
There came a little blackbird 

And snapped off her nose. 

— Mother Goose 



Preparation 



PupiVs part 



Yes. 



(In all probability there will 
be none. If it happens that there 
is some one the teacher should have 
a picture for him to look at.) 

He wears a crown and a long 
velvet robe. 
A castle. 

It was large and had many towers 
built on it. In the castle there was 
furniture of gold, and many other 
fine things. 

They ate plum puddings, fruit- 
tarts, rich cakes, sweets, and fruits. 



Teacher's part 

Do you boys and girls like stories 
about kings and queens of long ago? 

Is there any one of you who has 
not seen the picture of a king or 
queen? 



How do we know a king by his 
picture? 

What was the king's home called? 
How did a castle differ from our 
homes? 



Do you suppose the king and 
queen ate the kind of food we eat? 



a funny rhyme about a 
queen of olden days — 



I know 
king and 
what they ate and what they did 



18 



Pupil's Aim 

Would you like to hear me say it so that you can learn it? 
Presentation 



(Children listen to rhyme.) 



A pie of blackbirds. 

The birds began to sing. 

Yes. 

Let them out the window. 

He went to his counting-house. 



It was where he kept his money. 
He [had spiles and piles of gold 
money. 

Eating bread and honey. 
Hanging out the clothes. 
A blackbird snapped off her nose. 



(Anna does as she is bidden.) 
Counting out his money. 



In the counting-house. 
Eating bread and honey in the 
parlor. 

Hanging up the washing. 
Snap off the maid's nose. 
(Children play it.) 



(Recites the rhyme.) 

Do any of you know the rhyme 
too? (If any do, they should be 
allowed to say it. This repetition 
only makes it easier for the others 
to get it.) 

What kind of pie did this king 
have? 

What strange thing happened 
when it was placed on the table? 

Do you think the king was 
pleased? 

What do you think he did with 
the birds? 

What did the king do after he 
ate? (If children don't remember, 
repeat part of the rhyme.) 

What do you think a counting- 
house was? 



What was the queen doing? 

And the maid? 

What happened to the maid? 

Let's play the last part of this 
story. Anna, you may choose the 
people to play the different parts. 

What should the king be doing? 
(Teacher addresses the boy that 
Anna chose to be king.) 

Where should he be? 

And the queen? (To the girl 
chosen to be queen.) 

The maid? 

What is the blackbird going to do? 

Now we'll play it. 

(If the class is large enough, 
another group should play it, for it 
helps them to visualize the scenes 
in the rhyme thereby helping them 
to memorize the poem.) 



19 

(If the teacher wishes the children to memorize this rhyme, she proceeds 
as below. This is the method of procedure when memorizing by the Whole.) 

Now I shall say it to you once 
more and then we shall see how 
quickly you boys and girls can 
learn it. 
(Children listen.) (Recites the rhyme.) 

I shall say it again and I want all 
of you to join me. Say just as 
(All say it as teacher leads.) much as you can. 

(Children repeat it with teacher.) Let's say it once more that way. 

Would any of you like to try to 
(If some one wishes to try, the say it alone? 
teacher encourages him by helping 
him in the weaker parts.) 

Tomorrow we shall say it two or 
three times and by that time most, 
if not all, of you will know the whole 
rhyme. 



2. THE ROCK-A-BY LADY 

The Rock-a-By Lady from Hushaby Street 

Comes stealing; comes creeping; 
And the poppies they hang from her head to her feet. 
And each hath a dream that is tiny and fleet- 
She bringeth her poppies to you, my sweet. 

When she findeth you sleeping! 

There is one little dream of a beautiful drum — 

"Rub-a-dub!" it goeth; 
There is one little dream of a big sugar-plum. 
And lo! thick and fast the other dreams come 
Of pop-guns that bang, and tin tops that hum, 

And a trumpet that bloweth! 

And dollies peep out of those wee little dreams 

With laughter and singing; 
And boats go a-floating on silvery streams. 
And the stars peek-a-boo with their own misty gleams. 
And up, up, and up, where the Mother Moon beams, 

The fairies go winging! 

Would you dream all these dreams that are tiny and fleet? 

They'll come to you sleeping; 
So shut the two eyes that are weary, my sweet. 
For the Rock-a-By Lady from Hushaby Street, 
With poppies that hang from her head to her feet. 

Comes stealing; comes creeping. 

— Eugene Field 



20 



Preparation 

I am going to tell you about a poet named Eugene Field and his 
family. There were five boys and girls in the Field family, and more 
fun-loving, rollicking children one never saw. Mr. Field liked to play, 
too, and although he was a busy man, he set aside an hour every night after 
supper to play with the children. Such happy times as they did have! 
Sometimes he played he was a bear, at other times he was a horse and 
went galloping about the room, and then again he was a doctor for the 
girls' dolls. Then, too, he wrote poems to amuse the children. Just 
think of the fun of having a daddy write real poems for you! I believe 
Mr. Field's children liked the time when he recited his poems to them 
best of the whole hour's fun. One poem they liked especially well was 
about the Rock-a-By Lady from Hushaby Street. In the poem he told 
them how a lovely lady dressed all in beautiful poppies comes to visit boys 
and girls at night. If she finds them sleeping she leaves a poppy in which 
there is a most wonderful dream, just the kind boys and girls like to dream. 

Pupil's Aim_ 

Shall I sa}^ the poem to you so you can hear about those lovely dreams? 
Presentation 

PupiVs part 



(Listen to the recitation of the 
poem.) 



Jack — The part about the drum 
that goes Rub-a-dub! 

Mary — The part about the fairies. 
(Children close their eyes.) 



Teacher s part 
(Recites the poem. It should be 
given musically and rather softly, 
particularly the first and fourth 
stanzas.) 

What part of this poem do you 
think Mr. Field's boys and girls 
liked best? 

Let's close our eyes and play w^e 
can see the Rock-A-By Lady. 



She is tall. There are flowers all 
over her dress. 

They are red. 

The Lady wears a white dress, 
and there are poppies in her hair. 



They have to go to sleep. 



(Children listen.) 

(Children name the various 
dreams.) 

(Children listen and perhaps join 
in on familiar phrases.) 



How does she look, James? 

What color are the poppies that 
you see. Jack? 

What else do you see, Mary? 

Open your eyes. 

What do boys and girls have to do 
to receive one of the Rock-A-By 
Lady's poppies? 

I will recite the second and third 
stanzas again, and when I have 
finished, I shall ask you to name all 
the different dreams that the Rock- 
A-By Lady can give boys and girls. 

(Recites second and third stanzas.) 

(Asks pupils to name the dreams.) 



I am going to say 
poem once more. 



the whole 



21 



(If the poem is to be memorized, proceed as follows. This is the method 
of procedure when memorizing by Parts.) 

I know you boys and girls would 
like to say this beautiful poem with- 
out the book just as I do, so we will 
begin to learn it. 

(Recites first thought.) 
'The Rock-A-By Lady from Hush- 
aby Street 

Comes stealing ; comes creeping;" 

Now rU say it again and you 
(Children repeat it in concert, say it with me. 
A few slower ones may be asked 
to repeat it individually. Then 
all repeat it together again.) 

(Teacher recites second thought.) 
"And the poppies they hang from 
her head to her feet," 
Say that line. 

(Teacher recites first and second 
thoughts.) 

'The Rock-A-By Lady from Hush^ 
aby Street 
Comes stealing; comes creeping; 
And the poppies they hang from her 
head to her feet," 



(Children repeat as they did first 
thought.) 



(Children 
thoughts.) 



repeat the two 



(Teacher recites third thought 
and proceeds to attach it to first 
two; then the fourth is studied in 
same way, and the whole stanza is 
memorized.) 

(Teacher proceeds this way with 
all stanzas.) 



STORY REPRODUCTION 

Material 

Children dearly love stories. There is nothing else except play to which 
they give themselves up with such complete abandon. And stories are 
good for them. They are cultural, moral, ethical, instructional, and enter- 
taining. There are no sane arguments against stories for children and there 
are scores for them. Do not be meager in the number you give your pupils. 
Acquaint the first grade children with one new story each week. Some of 
that number should be told (or read) merely to familiarize the children 
with them. Others should be told and thoroughly discussed, and still 
others are to be reprodnced by the children, either by retelling or drama- 
tization. Of the last class there should not be many — not more than 
two each month — for the children are to review these again and again until 
they know them|perfectly. 



22 

Students of child study know that a child's taste for stories varies with 
his age. This fact must be kept in mind when stories are chosen for chil- 
dren. The following classification of stories according to the age of the 
child is the one on which the story work in this bulletin is based. 

1 . Rhymes From 2 to 6 years of age. 

2. Nursery tales From 3 to 7 years of age. 

3. Fairy (and wonder) tales From 4 to 9 years of age. 

4. Fables From 6 to 10 years of age. 

5. Myths From 6 to 12 years of age. 

6. Folk tales and legends From 6 to 12 years of age. 

7. Bible stories From 6 years of age on. 

8. True stories of modern times From 6 years of age on. 

9. Hero or epic tales From 10 to 14 years of age. 

10. Romantic stories (novels) From 12 years of age on." 

Under Story Reproduction in each grade in this bulletin there is a clas- 
sified list of some of the best children's stories. These stories are classics 
and every child should be made familiar with as many of those suggested 
for his grade as he is capable of assimilating. If time permits and the 
child possesses the ability, the teacher should supplement the list with others 
of the same literary standard. 

Rhymes 

■ Rhymes and jingles make instant appeal to every young child. This 
is due no doubt to the fact that the literature of every people had its 
beginning in poetry. Poetr}^ was the primitive man's natural way of 
expressing the music in his soul. The child, who is a later edition of primi- 
tive man, enjoys as did his remote ancestors the swing and rhythm of 
poetry. He masters it easily. Many children have an extensive reper- 
toire of rhymes and Verses before they enter school. This however is not 
generally true of the children who live in the country. The rural teacher 
may take it for granted that if her pupils are familiar with any rhymes at 
all upon entering school that they do not know a sufficient number. Roll- 
licking, alliterative, humorous rhymes are just the thing for the unemo- 
tional, serious small boys and girls in the rural schools. There are none 
better than the Mother Goose melodies. They are classic literature. To 
supplement them, see Other Rhymes under Poem Study for this grade. 

Nursery tales 

In early days man dwelt in close touch with nature and he believed 
that water, stones, trees, animals, etc., possessed spirits and could think 
and talk. The child passes through a like period of development when he 
is from three to seven years of age. His kinship with nature is 
very close then. The boy thinks of his dog as his equal and he believes 
sincerely that the fowls and domestic animals respond when he talks to 
them; while the little girl doesnotdoubt that the flowers and birds under- 
stand what she says to them. Naturally stories that personify nature 
and those in which birds, animals, and trees are made to talk and live like 
people appeal strongly to these children. These stories (called nursery 
tales because they are the first kind of prose story to appeal to children) 
are of two types. The Cumulative story is the simplest. It begins with 
one or few facts and the details are added one by one. The child listens 



23 

eagerly for the successive additions to the story and as the cumulative 
phrase gets longer and longer his pleasure in the story increases. 

The other kind of nursery tale is the Repetition story. This has its charm 
for children in the repetitive thought that is heard throughout it. Quite 
generally it is clothed in the same words each time it occurs, as, " 'I will, 
then' " said the Little Red Hen, and she did," or, "By the hair of my 
chinny, chin, chin, I'll huff and I'll puff. And I'll blow your house in." 
It is highly desirable that country boys and girls should become familiar 
with a number of stories that call attention to the human-like qualities of 
animals as do these nursery tales and also many of the folk tales and legends. 
Country children live in closer contact with animals than do city children, 
yet they often fail to have a proper amount of sympathy for them. These 
stories help to develop the right attitude and feeling toward their dumb 
friends. 

Cumulative stories 

The Old Woman and her Pig *(1) (4) (9) 
The House that Jack Built (4) (9) 
The Gingerbread Man (2) (9) (10) 
Chicken Little (4) (9) 
The Cat and the Parrot (1) 

Repetition stories 

The Three Bears (1) (4) (5) (9) 
The Three Billy-Goats Gruff (4) (11) (12) 
The Three Pigs (1) (4) (9) 

The Straw Ox (Reading — Literature. Free and Treadwell. First book) 
- Little Half-Chick (2) (9) 
The Little Red Hen (2) (4) 

The stories used in the first half of this year's work should be chosen 
almost entirely from the classes described above, rhymes and nursery tales. 
Later in the year the following classes of stories should be used. 

Fairy (and wonder) stories 

(This and the followmg classes of stories will be described in later grades.) 
Cinderella (4) (5) (6) (7) (14) 
Snow White (7) 

Beauty and the Beast (5) (6) (14) 
Puss in Boots (4) (5) (6) (14) 
Jack and the Bean Stalk (4) (5) (14) 
The Shoemaker and the Elves (2) (7) (9) (14) 
Boots and his Brothers (Peter Paul and Espen) (9) (11) 
Why the Sea is Salt (1) (6) (11) (12) 
The Lad Who Went to the North Wind (11) (12) 
The Pig Brother (1) 

Fables 

The Dog and his Image (4) (14) (16) 

The Fox and the Crow (9) (16) 

The Lion and the Mouse (4) (14) (16) 

* The numbers refer to Sources of Stories, page 135. 



24 

Myths 

Golden Rod and Asters (9) 

Proserpine (9) (13) (22) 

The Story of Arachne (9) (13) 

The Story of Clytie (4) (9) (13) 

Iris' Bridge (The Story of the Rainbow) (4) (13) 

Folk tales and legends 

The Little Red Hen and the Fox— Folk tale (2) (4) (9) 

The Bremen Town Musicians (The Traveling Musicians) (4) (7) (13) 

(14) 
Little Red Riding Hood— English folk tale (4) (5) (6) (14) 
Raggylug — Folk tale (1) 
Uncle Remus' stories — Animal lore (15) 
Epaminondas— Southern tale (2) 
The Jackal and the Alligator— Hindo folk tale (2) 
Adventures of Prickly Porky, Poor Mrs. Quack, Old Man Coyote, 

and others (24) 
Mother West Wind Stories (25) 
Tales of Benjamin Bunny, Peter Rabbit, Squirrel Nutkin, and others 

(26) 
Little Tavwots — Indian legend (1) 

The Legend of St. Valentine (George Primary Plan Book) 
How the Robin's Breast Became Red— Old legend (3) (4) (9) (13) 
The Woodpecker— Old legend (3) (4) (9) (13) 
Why Evergreen Trees Keep their Leaves all Winter (1) (4) 

Bible stories 

How the Baby Moses was Saved (Exodus, Chap .1:22 and Chap 

11:1-44) (The Child in the Bulrushes) (32) 
*The Birth of Christ, or The First Christmas (St. Luke, Chap. 11:1-18) 
The First Easter (St. Luke, Chap. XXIV) 

The Rainbow as the Bow of Promise (Genesis, Chap. IX: 8-18) (32) 
(This may be told after a nature study lesson on the rainbow.) 

True stories of modern times 

The story of the first Thanksgiving 
The story of Washington's boyhood 
Stories about Lincoln 
(These stories may be found in an elementary United States history.) 

Method 

The story should first be told by the teacher. She should have the 
lower grade children, particularly, sit near her during the story-telling period 
for nearness to the teller seems to enchance the vividness of the story. She 
also should look at all her pupils during the telling of the story for every 
child wants to feel that it is told to him directly, and this he can not do 
unless the teacher includes him in her glances as she talks. 

* The story of the birth of Christ is well told in Jean Mitchell's School 
by Angelina Wray. 



25 

The teacher's EngHsh, her mannerisms, her vivacity or lack of it will 
be reproduced, to a great extent, by the children with the reproduction 
of the story. Hence it should be very well told. A most careful preparation 
will have to be made by those who have had little or no training in story- 
telling. Fortunately there is no one with ordinary capabilities who with 
earnest effort can not in a short time learn to tell a story well enough to 
secure and hold the attention of her pupils. The question that troubles 
inexperienced teachers is, "How shall I go about it?" The first step is the 
selection of a story. It must be one with an interesting beginning, for 
children do not like description or explanation. As Miss Bailey has said, 
"It must catch the attention of the audience as the curtain rises." This 
must be followed by action, continuous action, and the end must be such 
that the children will know definitely what happened to the chief characters. 

The next step is how to get .the story ready to tell. It should be read 
several times. It is better to allow some time to elapse between the several 
readings. Then attempt should be made to outline the story. The outline 
will prove whether or not the teller has the events of the story in their 
proper sequence. There is perhaps no more serious way of bungling a 
story than to get the order of events confused. After the teller is able to 
make a correct outline, she should rehearse the story to an imaginary class 
until she can tell it well. Living with a story until it has been thoroughly 
assimilated is the secret of successful story-telling. Then the pictures of 
the story are seen vividly, the proper emotion is felt, and the language of 
the author has become more or less a habit with the teller, and she is able 
to tell the story simply, naturally^ and forcefully. 

It is a grave mistake to try to memorize a story and give it verbatim. 
A story so given can not ring as true as one that through study has become 
the teller's own; beyond that, the teller is hindered by the words of another, 
and if he happens to forget a word or phrase, he is confused, if not lost 
altogether. 

After the telling of the story is finished there should be a discussion 
of it (except in the case of those stories that are to be told only). Questions 
should be asked by both teacher and pupils and the discussion continued 
until the teacher is sure that the story is well fixed in the minds of the 
children. Sometimes a second or even third telling of the story is necessary 
in this grade, particularly with children who have not been accustomed to 
hearing stories. In no case should children be asked to retell or dramatize a 
story until the names of the characters, the part each one takes, and the 
order of incidents are clearly fixed in their minds. In case the story is to 
be dramatized, the exact wording and action should be left to the spon- 
taneity of each child. Urge the children to take the initiative in selecting 
the proper child for each part and in arranging the stage properties. Chil- 
dren will enjoy dramatizing stories more than retelling them, but dramatiza- 
tion should not be used to the exclusion of the other. For suggestions for 
retelling a story see Story Work under second grade. 



26 

Model 
The teacher tells the story as follows 

THE THREE BHLY -GOATS GRUFF 

Once upon a time there lived three Billy-Goats; and the name of all 
three was Gruff. One was Httle, and one was big, and the other was just 
middle-sized. 

Not far from their home there was a hill where the grass grew green and 
juicy. One day Big Billy-Goat Gruff said, "Let's go up there on the hill 
and eat the green grass. Then we'll grow fat." 

So they started for the hillside. On the way there was a bridge which 
led across a little brook. Under the bridge lived a fierce troll. He had 
eyes as big as saucers, a long, long nose, and his voice was very loud. Very 
soon he heard something go trip-trip, trip-trip, trip-trip across the bridge. 
"Stop!" he roared. "Who is that going across my bridge?" "Oh," said 
httle Billy-Goat Gruff, "It's just I— Little Billy-Goat Gruff." "Where are 
you going?" said the troll. "I am going up on the hillside to eat grass. 
I want to grow fat." "You're not going any farther. I am coming up to 
eat you," roared the troll in a frightful tone. "Oh! please don't eat me. 
I'm too little. W^ait until Middle-sized Billy-Goat Gruff comes along. 
He is much bigger." "Very well, I will wait," answered the troll. "Run 
along to the hillside and grow fat." So Little Billy-Goat Gruff went on — 
trip-trip, trip-trip, trip-trip. 

Soon the troll heard something go tfip-trap, trip-trap, trip-trap across 
the bridge. "Stop!" he roared. "Who is that going across my bridge?" 
"Oh," said Middle-sized Billy-Goat Gruff, "It's just I— Middle-sized 
Billy-Goat Gruff," "Where are you going." asked the troll. "I am going 
up on the hillside to eat grass. I want to grow fat." "You are not going 
any farther. I am coming up to eat you," the troll said in his most fright- 
ful voice. "Oh! please don't eat me. I'm too little. W^ait until Big 
Billy-Goat Gruff comes along. He's much bigger." "Very well. I will 
wait," said the troll. "Run along to the hillside and grow fat." So 
Middle-sized Billy-Goat Gruff went on — trip-trap, trip-trap, trip-trap. 

Soon after that the troll heard something go trip-trop, trip-trop, trip- 
trop across the bridge. "Stop," roared the troll once more. "Who is 
that going across my bridge?" "Oh," said Big Billy-Goat G^uff, "It is 
I — Big Billy-Goat Gruff." "Where are you going?" "I am going up 
on the hillside to eat grass. I want to grow fat." "But you are not 
going any farther," said the troll. "I am coming up to eat you." "Very 
well," said Big Billy-Goat Gruff. "Come on. I am ready for you." 

As the troll came up Big Billy-Goat Gruff ran at him with his head down 
and how he did bump that troll. The troll rolled over and over, and finally 
he tumbled into the water. Down, down, down, he went, and what 
became of it nobody knows. He never came up. 

Big Billy-Goat Gruff went on to the hillside and found the other two 
goats; all three stayed there until they were so fat they could hardly walk 
home. 



27 
QUESTIONS FOR LEADING THE DISCUSSION 

1. Did Big Billy-Goat Gruff do right in pushing the troll into the 

water? 

2. How many Billy-Goats were there in this story? 

3. What were their names? 

4. Where did the troll live? 

5. How did he look? 

6. Why did they cross the bridge where the terrible troll lived? 
• 7. Why did they wish to go to the hillside? 

8. Tell us what Big Billy-Goat Gruff said about it. 

9. Who reached the bridge first? 

10. Show us how his feet sounded as he went across the bridge. 

11. What did the troll say when he heard him? 

12. Tell us Little Billy-Goat's answer. 

13. What did the troll say then? 

14. Show how Middle-sized Billy-Goat's feet sounded when he went 

across the bridge. 

15. What did the troll say to him? 

16. Tell us Middle-sized Billy-Goat's reply. 

17. Was the troll satisfied with the answer? Why was he? 

18. How did Big Billy-Goat Gruff's footsteps sound? 

19. What did the troll say this time? 

20. Why could not Big Billy-Goat satisfy him the way the other two 

had? 

21. What did he say? 

22. Do you suppose he felt afraid when he saw the big troll coming 

after him? 

23. What did he do to him? 

24. What did the three goats do then? 

(In case the story is to be dramatized see below. If it is to be retold 
see suggestions under Story Reproduction in second grade.) 



Pupil's part Teacher s part 

Yes. Shall we play this story? 

A hillside, a bridge, the goats' What places shall we need? 

home. 

Three chairs placed in a row What shall we have for our bridge? 

would make a good bridge. 

What shall we have for the 
Let's play that this is a hill over hillside? 
here. (A child runs to the space That' surely will make a splendid 

m front of the blackboard as she hillside 
speaks.) 

What shall we have for the goat's 
(The children decide that their home? 
home should be in the opposite 
direction from the hillside.) 



28 



Three Billy-Goats and a troll. 
I. (All will probably desire to.) 



James will make a good one 
because he is so little. 

Wouldn't Anna make a good one? 



Jack should be Big Billy-Goat 
Gruff because he is the largest of all 
of us. 

In their home. 

Under the bridge. 

Big Billy-Goat Gruff. 

"Let's go up there on the hill and 
eat green grass. Then we'll grow 
fat." 

All start for the bridge. 

Little Billy-Goat Gruff does. 



(Children proceed to play the 
story.) 



What people do we need? 

Whom shall we have for the troll? 

Suppose we let Mary be the troll 
because her eyes are large, and if 
she opens them wide perhaps they 
will look like saucers. 

Whom shall we have for Little 
Billy-Goat? 

That is a fine suggestion, Mary. 

Whom shall we have for Middle- 
sized Billy-Goat Gruff? 

Indeed she would. 

Whom shall we have for Big 
Billy-Goat Gruff? 

Where should the goats be at the 
beginning of the story? 
Where must the troll be? 
Who speaks first? 
What does he say. Jack? 



What do the goats do then? 

Who reaches the bridge first? 

Now let's begin at the first of the 
story and play it all through. 
Remember, Jack, that you begin 
the story. 

Already. 



PICTURE STUDY 
Material 



Picture study is used as material for language because children quite 
generally talk freely about pictures. 

Lower grade children like pictures of these subjects: their animal pets, 
farm animxals, babies with their mothers (Madonnas), children of their 
own age playing, people working at the primitive tasks (feeding hens, 
churning, knitting, sewing, plowing, reaping, etc.). A list of pictures 
adapted to the pupils of this grade is given here. Five pictures should be 
thoroughly studied this year. 



\ 29 

Miss Bowles — Reynolds 

Feeding her Birds — Millet 

Boy and Rabbit — Raeburn 

Madonna of the Chair — Raphael 

Red Riding Hood — Ferrier 

A Facinating Tale — Ronner 

Can't You Talk — Holmes 

Two Mothers and Their Families — Gardner-Bouguereau 

Method 

If the picture chosen for the language lesson happens to illustrate a 
scene or character of a story, the story should be told with this picture 
before the pupils. For example, when the picture of Little Red Riding 
Hood is studied the story of Little Red Riding Hood should be told. The 
story in such a lesson should be as carefully prepared and as well given as 
the story in a regular story language lesson. The telling of it should be 
followed by discussion in the form of a conversation lesson. (For a model 
of this type see fourth grade.) 

If the picture is not of the story type, the entire lesson will take the form 
of a conversation lesson, the teacher by her questioning drawing out a 
description of the picture as in the model given below. 

After two or three picture lessons have been given, and the children 
have an insight into picture study, place the picture to be studied next 
before the pupils a few days previous to the lesson. Following this plan, 
some teachers have found that the children had become so interested in the 
picture before the lesson that they were able to ask questions and carry 
on a discussion with but very little help from her. However, this is not 
typical of first grade work. If your first grade cannot do it, do not be 
discouraged. 

Model 

MISS BOWLES (WITH SPANIEL) 

Painted by Sir Joshua Reynolds in 177 S 

Preparation 

Mr. and Mrs. Bowles, wealthy English people, were very proud of their 
fine little daughter and they asked a famous artist to paint her picture. 
This (showing the picture) is a copy of the picture he painted showing the 
girl with her favorite pet. The name of the picture is Miss Bowles because 
that is what the artist teasingly called the little miss — just as though she 
were a grown-up lady. 

Presentation 

Placing the picture where all can see it well, ask the following questions: 

\. Where is Miss Bowles in this picture? (Outdoors, probably in 
the park adjoining her home.) 

2. What is she doing to the dog? 

3. I wonder if the dog likes to be hugged so closely? 

4. Do you think she has any reason for holding him so closely? 

5. What color is he? 

6. How do you think she keeps his long hair looking so silky? 



30 

7. Show me how tall he is. 

8. Tell me how Miss Bowles' dress differs from yours. 

9. Do you think you would like this little girl for a p'aymate? 
10. Show me how Miss Bowles is sitting. 



DAILY LANGUAGE DRILL 
Material 

The child speaks as he hears. He has in his vocabulary the words 
of his daily associates. If their English is fairly correct, his will be so; 
if poor, his will be poor. When he comes to school many of his speaking 
habits are already of four or five years' standing. To establish correct 
habits in place of these wrong ones is a big task for the school. At first 
thought it seems impossible. However, when one realizes that according 
to investigations and surveys the majority of errors may be placed in one 
of the following four classes, the task is perceptibly lessened: (1) verb 
errors, (2) pronoun errors, (3) faulty pronunciation, (4) colloquialisms. 

Below there are named some of the errors that are common to the majority 
of first grade children. If others are found to be used more frequently 
than these they should be substituted for these. 



1. 


Verb errors 










Come 

Seen 

Done 

Knowed 

Ain't 


for 
for 
for 
for 
for 


came 

saw 

did 

knew 

am not, is not, or 


are not 


2. 


Pronoun errors 








Me and h: 
Her and I 
Hisself 


im 


for he and I 
for she and I ^ 
for himself 




3. 


Faulty pronunciations 
Git for got 
Ketch for catch 
Gimme for give me 
Lemme for let me 




4. 


Colloquialisms 
This here book 
Nowheres 


for this book 
for nowhere 





Method 

It does not pay to attempt to correct too many errors in any one year. 
It is better to work on only five or six and elimina e them entirely. Drill, 
drill, drill on the right form is the only way to teach children to talk 
correctly after they have once acquired a bad habit. They must get the 
correct form through their ears, then they must say it again and again 
until it says itself when the occasion arises. It should be presented to 



31 

the children in as natural a situation as possible, such as a game. Plenty 
of drill in a game or interesting snappy drill will make a correct form 
permanent more quickly and more surely than any other means yet devised. 
Select the word or expression that needs attention first, and use it in a game 
or drill five minutes each day. Before the children get tired of the game, 
introduce the word or expression in another game or drill. Perhaps even 
a third will be necessary. When the children use the expression correctly 
in their conversation on the playground, begin to work on another error. 
Review the first one frequently however. Allow the lapse between the 
periods for review to become longer and longer as the habit becomes more 
firmly fixed. 

One or two language games are given in several grades in this bulletin 
under Models. The teacher will necessarily have to use many more. 
Deming's Language games for all Grades published by Beckley-Cardy Com- 
pany, Chicago, will be found very helpful. 



Models 
IT ISN'T instead of IT AIN'T 

Leader. I am thinking of an animal that lives in the woods. 

A. Is it a bear? 
Leader. No, it isn't a bear. 

B. Is it a squirrel? 
Leader. No, it isn't a squirrel. 

C. Is it a 'coon? 
Leader. No, it isn't a 'coon. 

D. Is it a chipmunk? 
Leader. Yes, it is a chipmunk. 

The one who guesses correctly becomes the next leader. In this game 
only the leader has drill in saying "It isn't " instead of "It ain't." There- 
fore, leadership should be given to all before any one serves twice as leader. 

The beginning statement may be left to the originality of the children. 
At first, it may be necessary for the teacher to suggest some. To use the 
same one long makes the game monotonous. Examples of others that 
may be used : I am thinking of an animal that lives in the water ; of a bird 
that lives near here; of a red flower; of a flower that grows in our school 
garden. 

ISN'T for AIN'T 

One member of the class leaves the room while the others choose some 
object that can be plainly seen by the leader when he returns. The game 
proceeds as follows: 

Leader. Is it the clock? 

A. No, it isn't the clock. 
Leader. Is it that chair? 

B. No, it isn't that chair. 



32 



Leader. Is it the bookcase? 

C. No, it isn't the bookcase. 
Leader. Is it Miss 's chair? 

D. Yes, it is Miss 's chair. 



Written Work 

COPYING FROM MODEL 

Material 

1. Sentences taken from the reading lesson 

Examples : 

Come away. 

Boy Blue had a new horn. 

Little Red Hen ate the bread. 

2. Sentences about the day or weather 

Examples : 

Today is Monday. 

See the rain coming down. ' 

The sun is shining today. 

3. Sentences about the objects or animals studied in the language lesson 

Examples : 

We watched a wren build her nest. 

I can hear the chewink's call. 

We put some frogs' eggs in our fish bowl. 

Seeds must have light. They turn yellow and die in the dark. 

4. Sentences taken from or about the poems studied 

Examples : 

I like the poem called The Baby. 
The friendly cow gives us milk. 

Method 

The^model for the copy work of the first grade should be written on, the 
board^where all can see it well, in a large round hand or printed in a good 
sized type. The copying should be done first with word cards, later in 
writing. The children will be able to copy sentences with word cards as 
soon as they know a sufficient number of words to make a sentence. That 
will be the second or third day. Some children will begin their sentences 
with capitals and close them with periods through imitation of the teacher. 
Others will have to be told to do it. Insistence upon these simple marks 
in the first work of sentence-making will make them become second nature 
by the end of the first year. 

In the third month the children should be able to copy a short sentence 
in writing. The model should, of course, contain only words that are very 
familiar to them; a sentence from the reading lesson is the best material 
at first. If the blackboard space allows it, children should do all their 



33 

writing the first five or six months on it. The full arm movement that is 
natural to children can be used to best advantage there. If it is necessary 
for them to write on paper, it should be the wide spaced kind. Little 
people should never be allowed to do small, cramped work. If possible 
all the writing work of this grade should be supervised. Children easily 
fall into bad habits if it is not. In rural schools particularly it doubtless 
will be impossible for the teacher to supervise all of it if much is given. 
In such case it should be used sparingly. It should never be used as a 
mere pastime or "busy work," for it is the beginning of written composi- 
tion work and it is important that it be done well. 

The question with the interrogation mark at the end should be introduced 
into the copy work the last half or third of the year. It will be copied more 
successfully if the children's attention has been called to it frequently as 
it appears in the reading lesson some weeks before it is used in a model 
for them to copy. 



Models 

'7 JQJyi TSJU/ dJ^uruSi. 



These sentences were copied from models on the board the seventh month 
of school. 



34 




- 


Jack 


be 






1 Jack 


be 




Jack 


jump 



nimble 



quick 



D 



the ! candlestick 11 , I 



To make the copy work of the first ^rade interesting and varied it may at 
times be illustrated by cuttings as shown here or by free hand drawings 
as shown in the first model in the second grade. Such work may after- 
wards be used for the display board in the schoolroom or several pages 
may be^bound^together to^form a[^book for the children's parents. 



35 



NAME AND ADDRESS 

Material 

Pupil's name and address 

Method 

The child should be taught to write his name during the first month of 
school. His address will be taught in parts throughout the year. By the 
end of the year he should be able to write it legibly and punctuate it properly. 
It is not necessary to tell him why a period is placed after an abbreviation 
if one appears in his address. Merely tell him that one belongs there and 
never allow him to omit it. 

Models 








36 



SECOND GRADE 

WHAT TO DO 

1. Work for free, natural expression. 

2. Insist upon short, clean-cut sentences. Continue to work against 
the over use of the connectives "and," '*so," and "then." 

3. Introduce into this year's oral work the question-sentence for the 
sake of variety in sentence type. 

4. Correct indistinct and slovenly habits of vocalization. (No teacher 
has time to give a course in voice culture but she can insist upon a distinct 
utterance of final syllables, and on a natural tone of voice when reading.) 

5. Conduct a daily language drill. 

MATERIAL AND METHOD 
Oral Work 

ORIGINAL COMPOSITION 

CONVERSATION LESSONS 

Spontaneous, concise expression. Improvement over first grade in 
articulation, enunciation, and pronunciation. 

OBSERVATION REPORTS 

Longer ones, given more frequently and more easily; an occasional 
use of the question. 

POEM STUDY 

Last year's work reviewed. From fifteen to twenty other poems 
studied this year, and at least one memorized each month. Memory 
gems also memorized. 

STORY REPRODUCTION 

A review of the stories liked best last year. Two stories reproduced 
each month this year. 

PICTURE STUDY 

Five masterpieces studied. 

LANGUAGE DRILL 

Conducted daily to correct errors in English. 

Written Work 

COPYING FROM MODEL 

Groups of sentences, short passages, and stanzas from poems may 
serve as models. Periods, capitals, and question marks always 
placed where needed. 

WRITING ORIGINAL SENTENCES 

At the end of this year, every child should be able to write an original 
statement or question, properly capitalized and with the correct mark 
at the end. 



37 

Oral Work 
ORIGINAL COMPOSITION 

CONVERSATION LESSONS 

Material 

The material for this year's work is a review and continuation of that 
suggested for the first year. 

a. Nature study : birds — how to protect them in summer, how to 
care for them during winter, how to build feeding tables, bird houses, 
etc.; squirrels — appearance, food, habits, preparation for winter; any other 
animal, domestic or wild, in which the children are interested. 

6. Elementary agriculture: farm work in fall, winter, and spring; 
the wonder of growing things. 

c. Hygiene: why we should sleep with our bedroom windows open; 
why the mud should be cleaned from our shoes before entering schoolroom 
or home; why we should not put pencils in our mouths; care of the finger 
nails ; etc. 

d. Subjects of local interest; the county fair; the carnival; the building 
of the new Grange building; a barn-raising; a community supper; the 
circus ; etc. 

e. Manners: at home; at school; when eating^how to use a knife and 
fork, what to say when leaving the table. 

Method 

The success of a conversation lesson depends greatly upon the choice 
of subject. If it is one in which the children are interested they will not 
need to be urged to talk. The fundamental aim of all language work is 
to get children to talk freely and naturally. It is nowhere more essential 
that they should do so than in the conversation lesson. Such a lesson is 
absolutely valueless if the teacher must do all the talking, getting only 
replies of "Yes" or "No" from the children, or if one or a few of the pupils 
monopolize the conversation. To be a successful lesson all must take part. 

The English used this year should begin to show the effect of the daily 
language drill. "And," "then," and "so," should also be heard much less 
frequently this year. There should be noticeable improvement in clearness 
of articulation, distinctness of enunciation, and correctness of pronuncia- 
tion. 

Help the children to acquire pleasing well-modulated voices. Cultivated 
voices are quite as important as correct language. 

Model 
(See 1st and 3rd grades.) 



OBSERVATION REPORTS 

Material 

Like those for conversation lessons the subjects for the observation 
reports must be kept close to the child's interests. Help him to answer 
his own questions. 



38 

One lesson each week should be planned for this year. The following 
list of subjects undoubtedly will have to be rearranged and supplemented 
to meet the needs of the class and to fit our variable seasons. 

September How bees gather honey. 

Are autumn flowers fragrant? 

How and where we found a cocoon or chrysalis. 

A beautiful sunset. 



October 



November 



December 



The changing color of leaves. 

What causes nuts to fall. 

How squirrels get and carry nuts. 

What some other animal does to prepare for winter. 



Flocks of birds going south. 
Appearance of a November sky. 
Difference in barks of t^vo kinds of trees, 
are quite different.) 



(Choose two that 



The different position of branches in various evergreen trees. 
What food is available for the winter birds. 
How many kinds of birds eat from the school feeding table 
fo" birds. 



January The patterns of frost on the window. 

What causes icicles. 
Why are icicles the shape they are? 
Is ice on the pond or river smooth on both sides? 
Compare a sheet of ice and glass. (The work on frost 
ice is elaborated next year.) 

February' Comparison of a dog's and a cat's paws. 

Comparison of the tracks they make in snow. 
Observe tracks of some other animals. 



and 



March The first signs of spring. 

Where and how a robin builds its nest. 
How it gets worms from the ground. 
Imitation of a bird's song or call. 

April Markings of at least two kinds of birds. 

What came from the cocoon or chr^^salis. 
How a bean begins to grow. (This is interesting to watch 

because the bean itself comes out of the ground on the 

stem.) 

May Where mushrooms and toadstools grow best. 

Various colorings of butterflies. 
The approach of a rain cloud. 

June Flowers that close at night. 

Flow a dandelion scatters its seeds. 



39 

Method 

It is obvious that the observation reports serve two purposes — first, 
the children are trained to be alert and accurate in their observation. 
Second, they are prepared for the topic recitations, and oral descriptions, 
explanations, and narrations that will come in later grades. That the exact 
purpose may be fulfilled, the teacher should observe the following points: 

a. Make clear definite assignments that the children may know exactly 

what you wish them to observe. 

b. Insist upon short, clean-cut sentences. 

c. Teach them to stand erect (preferably before the class to accustom 

them to an audience). 

d. Help them to feel natural — free from embarrassment or self-con- 

sciousness. 

e. From this grade on, encourage them to vary the style of their sen- 

tences. (Begin with the question in this grade.) 

f. Pay attention to the English used. 

Models 

a. I watched a black cloud on my way home last nigbt. I knew it 

was a rain cloud. It came toward us so I ran. Bill didn't, and he 
got wet. 

b. Did you ever see a bee get honey from a lily? I did yesterday. 

He sucked the honey out of it. The yellow powder in the lily 
got all over his legs. 

POEM STUDY 

Material 

The poems learned last year should be recalled to the children's minds 
frequently. From fifteen to twenty others are to be studied this year and 
at least one should be memorized each month. Six to eight memory gems 
should also be memorized. 

Poems to be studied 

Farewell to the Farm (4)* R.-L. Stevenson 

Thirty Days Hath September (1-4 th gd.) ._ Unknown 

The Bee and the Flower (9-Bk. 3) A. Tennyson 

Daisies (9-Bk. 2) (10) F. D. Sherman 

Lady Moon (1) Lord Houghton 

The Owl (8) (9-Bk. 3) (12-Bk. 1) A. Tennyson 

The Land of Counterpane (4) R. L. Stevenson 

How the Leaves Come Down (1) Susan Collidge 

Thanksgiving Day (1) L. M. Child 

The Bill of Fare (2) Eugene Field 

Holy Night (Song books) 

The Night Before Christmas (1-lst gd.) Clement Moore 

Merry Christmas (9-Bk. 2) Nellie Brown 

The Camel's Hump (3) Rudyard Kipling 



The numbers refer to Sources of Poems page 135. 



40 

The Owl and the Pussy Cat (3)(8)(10)(12-Bk. l)Edward Lear 

The Sugar Plum Tree (6) Eugene Field 

Our Native Land (9-Bk. 2) C. Phillips 

The Wind (1) R. L. Stevenson 

Robin Red Breast (8) (9-Bk. 1) (13) Wm. Allingham 

Nearly Ready (1) Mary M. Dodge 

Seven Times One (1) l Jean Ingelow 

I Love You, Mother (1) Joy Allison 

The Brown Thrush (1) Eugene Field 

The Rainbow (5) (9-Bk. 2) Christina Rossetti 

Poems to be read to the pupils 

The Twenty-Third Psalm (l-3rd gd.) The Bible 

Two Little Kittens (12) Unknown 

The Night Wind (1)-- Eugene Field 

Hiawatha's Sailing (9-Bk. 3) H. W. Longfellow 

Little Orphant Annie (7) J. W. Riley 

Jes' 'Fore Christmas (6) Eugene Field 

Santa Claus Land (2) Myrtle B. Carpenter 

Santa Claus (He Comes in the Night) (2) Unknown 

The Spider and the Fly (9) (12) Mary Howitt 

The Village Blacksmith (l-4th gd.) H. W. Longfellow 

Method 

Emotion is the very essence of poetry. A teacher must not only discern 
the predominant emotion of the poem she is about to teach but she must 
yield herself to it so thoroughly that she thrills with it and it radiates from 
her to the pupils. When this is done a poem never seems a lifeless, unin- 
teresting thing to the pupils. 

If the poem is to be committed to memory, do not consider the study 
of it finished until every child can recite it alone with good expression and 
clear enunciation. To give the pupils an incentive to do good work in 
memorizing, plan to use some of their work for morning exercises or for the 
Friday afternoon program. 

The concert method of reciting poetry may be used quite generally in the 
first and second grades. It is good for two reasons. It saves time, and the 
poor reader is supported and guided in matters of time, quality, and 
emphasis by the leader. If used exclusively, however, it is likely to result 
in dependence and careless enunciation. 

Model 
See Models under Poem Study in first and third grades. 



41 

STORY REPRODUCTION 

Material 

Tell the children an abundance of siories. One of the chief reasons for 
this is to give them the tools — ideas and words — with which to talk. As 
stated many times in this bulletin, the fundamental aim of oral language 
work is to help the pupils to talk freely and well. They will do so in nine 
cases out of ten if they have something to say. In the reproduction of 
stories they have the something to say. When the story is well told and the 
children enjoy it, they are very eager to give it back; they think it fun. 
Under the spell of the story children become forgetful of self and talk freely 
and naturally. There is no better material for children for drill in talking 
than the reproducing of a story. 

Two stories should be reproduced by retelling or dramatizing each month. 
Use the following list as a basis for story work. No child should complete 
the grade without becoming familiar with the stories named here. These 
may be supplemented by others chosen by the teacher. 

Rhymes 

Review such of the last year's work as the children ask for. 

Nursery tales 

Review the childrens' favorites in the list for first grade, and if any 
were omitted last year use those now. 

Fairy (and wonder) tales 

(These and the following classes of stories were not defined in the 
outline for first grade, hence they are defined here.) 
Fairy tales are make-believe stories in which there is a contest between 
good and evil. The good is helped to triumph by the assistance of a good 
fairy, or a bird, a god mother, a magic ring, etc. ; while evil has as its repre- 
sentative a wicked fairy, or a terrible giant, a hideous dwarf, a dragon, etc. 
Although make-believe, these stories are based on truth and help to develop 
the child's moral life. (Some story-tellers classify certain of these stories 
as wonder tales.) 

Hansel and Gretel *(5) (6) (7) 

The Ugly Duckling (4) (5) (8) (9) 

Diamonds and Toads (6) 

The Stone Cutter (3) (9) 

Old Pipes and the Dryad (3) 

Rumpelstiltskin (6) (7) (9) 

One Eye, Two Eye, and Three Eyes (5) (14) 

Goody Two-shoes (10) 

The Sleeping Beauty in the Woods (Briar Rose) (5) <6) (7) (14) 

The Girl Who Trod on a Loaf (8) (10) 

Fables 

Fables are short stories, usually about animals, planned to teach a lesson. 
Because they are short, teachers sometimes have considered them simple 
and quite suitable for young children. This is not always true. The lesson 
or moral which each one contains calls for reflection; teachers should 
select those in which the moral lies easily within the comprehension of the 
pupils. 

*The numbers refer to Sources of Stories, page 135. 



42 

The Ant and the Grasshopper (9) (14) (16) 
The Boy Who Calls "Wolf" (2) (4) 
The Crow and the Pitcher (4) (9) (14) (16) 
The Sun and the Wind (2) (4) (9) (14) (16) 

Myths 

Myths are tales and legends of the gods and goddesses of certain people, 
particularly the Greeks, the Romans, and the Norse. These early people 
knew very little about science and when anything phenomenal in nature 
happened such as the change of seasons, an eclipse of the moon, or the daily 
passage of the sun from east to west, they had to resort to their imaginations 
for an explanation. The result was what today we call myths. Many of 
them also contain moral or religious truths. Most of the myths are beauti- 
ful stories and authors and poets have constantly referred to them in their 
writings. All boys and girls should become familiar with the best known of 
them. 

Pegasus, the Horse with Wings (The Chimera) (20) (21) (22) 

Stories about Odin, Thor, Loki, and Balder (4) (13) (21) (27) 

King Midas and the Golden Touch (21) . 

Echo, the Air-Maiden (4) * . 

A Legend of the Anemone (4) 

Why the Narcisus Grows by the Water (22) 

Folk tales and legends 

These two types are grouped together because they are alike in that both 
are the unwritten history of a particular people. They come to us from 
many generations ago. The distinction betw^een them is not one that can 
be clearly made, and what some classify as a folk tale other authorities 
call a legend. 

Jack the Giant Killer— English folk tale (4) (5) (6) 

Tom Thumb (Thumbling)—EngHsh folk tale (4) (5) (7) (14) 

The Little Jackals and the Lion — Hindu animal legend (2) 

How Brother Rabbit Fooled the Whale and the Elephant — ^American 

folk lore (2) 
The Little Jackal and the Camel — Hindu animal legend (2) 
The Fir Tree — German folk tale (2) 
The Fire Bringer — Indian legend (1) 
Why the Bear has a Stumpy Tail (11) (12) 
The Legend of St. Valentine (George Plan Book — Primary) 
The Discontented Pine Tree (4) (9) 

Bible stories 

The Bible has been called the greatest story book in the world. It con- 
tains wonderful stories of the beginnings of things, stories of pastoral 
life, and stories of heroes, all of which because of the simplicity of style 
and candor of thought appeal strongly to the child. 

Stories of Joseph 

The Boy and His Dreams (Genesis Chap. XXXVII :1-12) (32) 
How He was Sold into Bondage (Genesis Chap. XXXVII :12-36) 

(32) 
Joseph Interprets Pharaoh's Dreams (Genesis Chap. XLI : 1-37) (32) 
How His Father Found Him (Genesis Chapters XLII-XLVI) 
(32) 



43 

The Birth of Christ (St. Luke Chap. 11:1^18) 
The First Easter (St. Luke Chap. XXIV) 

True stones of modern times 

Toward the latter part of this year some of the children may ask for a 
"true story," and it is well for the teacher to be prepared. A few are sug- 
gested here, including some for "special" days. 

The story of the first Thanksgiving (Elementary History) 

Stories about Lincoln and Washington (Elementary History) 

The story of St. Patrick 

A true story about a girl^Louisa Alcott (2) 

The Gulls of Salt Lake (2) 

The story of Johnny Appleseed (9) 

Method 

The method of having a story retold should be varied as much as possible. 
Occassionally one child should be called upon to tell the entire story if it 
is fairly short, but usually it will be told in parts, each child doing his share. 
It may be divided into chapters, the name of each being placed on the board 
and each child choosing the chapter he wishes to tell. Another interesting 
variation in story-telling is described under Story Reproduction in the 
third grade. 

It must not be understood that the entire period is to be spent in merely 
retelling the story. Every story told must be commented upon. In this grade 
it is no doubt best for the teacher to make all the criticism and she must 
make sure that her constructive criticism far over balances the adverse. 
Pointing out defects only will never improve the child's story-telling 
but appreciative encouraging remarks will, for example, "Didn't James tell 
that well? He didn't get confused in the parts of the story at all today," 
or, "Did you notice, children, that Alice didn't swing her body today," or, 
"John, you could have made us listen better if you had said your words out 
round and full. When we couldn't hear you we felt like looking around 
the room instead of at you. You always get the story more quickly than 
any one else in the class and I want you to show us tomorrow that you can 
speak out as well as the others; will you?" 

If the teacher becomes discouraged by lack of response when she asks 
for a story to be retold, she may ask herself these questions: 

1. How much time did I spend on the preparation of this story? 

2. Did I tell (or read) it well? 

3. Was the discussion so led that the children were eager to respond? 

4. Were the names of the characters and the order of events well 
fixed in the children's minds before I asked them to retell the story? 

During the retelling or dramatization of the story the teacher has an 
excellent opportunity to make note of the common language errors of the 
class. Unless they are pronounced, it is better to attempt to correct them 
in the daily language drill than during the story-telling period, for too much 
criticism of his English will kill any spontaneity the child may possess and 
tend to make him self-conscious. 



u 

Model 

THE UGLY DUCKLING 

The teacher tells the story as it appears in Andersen's Fairy Tales. 
She then directs a discussion of it by carefully prepared questions. For 
the retelling of the story next day she divides it into the following chapters. 
She may assign each child a particular chapter, or allow each one to choose 
the one he prefers. 

Chapter I. The Hatching of the Eggs 

Chapter II. How the Farmyard Fowls Treated the Ugly Duckling 

Chapter III. The Days the tjgly Duckling Spent in the Marsh 

Chapter IV. How He Enjoyed Living with the Old Woman and her 

Cat and Hen 

Chapter V. Where He Stayed During the Winter 

Chapter VI. The Wonderful Thing that Happened in the Spring 

PICTURE STUDY 

Material 

Study five masterpieces this year 

Shoeing the Bay Mare — Landseer 

A Helping Hand — RenDuf 

The First Step— Millet 

Children of Charles I — -Van Dyck 

Holy Night — Correggio 

Madam Lebrun a^id Daughter — Lebrun 

Return to the Farm — Troyon 

Strawberry Girl — Reynolds 

Method 

As suggested in the first grade, the pictures used for study in the grades 
may be classified in two groups. The first group includes all those that 
were painted to represent some character or scene from a story, historical 
or fanciful. Little Red Riding Hood and The Pied Piper of Hamelin by 
Kaulbach, and Pilgrims Going to Church by Bough ton belong to this class. 
The pictures of the second group are not based on any particular story. 
Many of them suggest a story of their own and in such case it would be 
very easy for the teacher to originate stories to fit them. Or the children 
might enjoy naming the characters and working out their own story to 
attach to the picture. However, neither of these two things should be done. 
Let the masterpiece mean all it can to the child by describing and discussing 
in class what is actually seen in the picture, and by drawing inferences about 
which there could be no question. Do no more than this. The picture will 
mean more and more as a child's mind unfolds and he is able to grasp more 
of the artist's meaning. Any little story that the teacher or pupils may 
invent to appeal to the six or eight year old mind may linger in the memory 
until the child becomes an adult when it will seem foolish indeed. It may 
even detract from his enjoyment of the picture. Any incident in the artist's 
life or anything in regard to the painting of a particular picture, in short 
any interesting /ac/ should be told, for that will add to the child's enjoyment 
of the picture at the time and it is a pleasure he will never outgrow. 



45 

Model 
SHOEING THE BAY MARE 

Painted by Sir Edwin Landseer 

Preparation 

The center of interest in the picture we are to study today is a beautiful 
horse named Betty. (Place picture where all the children can see it.) 
She was a very intelligent horse too. When she needed new shoes on her 
feet her master told her to go to the blacksmith shop, and when he had let 
her out of the barn or yard, she always trotted directly there. It is need- 
less to say Mr. Bell, her master, was very proud of her. Being wealthy, 
he offered Sir Landseer a goodly sum of money to paint her picture. Sir 
Landseer saw her at one of her visits to the blacksmith's and he decided to 
paint her there. 

Presentation 

L What color do you think Betty was? 

2. What must a man do to make a horse as sleek as Betty was? (If 
sleek is a new word, be sure it is understood.) 

3. What do they call a spot of white as Betty had in her forehead? 

4. How does the blacksmith make her shoe secure? 

5. Is the fitting of new shoes painful to a horse? (No.) 

6. How do you explain Betty's look then? (She is simply curious to 

see what is going on. She may not like the looks of the fire and 
of the irons. But she knows the blacksmith and she knows he 
will not hurt her.) 

7. What does a blacksmith wear to keep sparks from burning his clothes? 

8. Notice the muscles in his right arm. What has made them grow so 

large? 

9. What animals besides Betty are in the picture? 
10. Why is the donkey there? 

IL What is he wearing across his back? 

12. Why do you think the dog happens to be there? (He is so interested 

in what is being done to Betty, perhaps he came with her.) 

13. What kind of a dog is he? 

14. What no doubt is in the cage? 

15. Do blacksmiths ordinarily have canaries in their shops? 

16. Why do you think this one has a canary? (He no doubt is very 

fond of animals.) 

17. From where does the light come in this picture? 

18. Why is it necessary to have a gate in the doorway? 

19. Have any of you boys and girls ever visited a blacksmith shop? 

20. How did it differ from this one? 



46 

DAILY LANGUAGE DRILL 

Material 

In this as in all the grades the teacher should work on the gravest errors 
first — those that seem most fundamental or those used most frequently. 
If some listed for previous grades or in following ones should in the judg- 
ment of the teacher be corrected in this grade, there should not be the slight- 
est hesitation to work on them here. The list given here is merely sugges- 
tive. No error is mentioned twice in this bulletin. 

L Verb errors 

You was for you were 

They was for they were 

Et for ate 

Sung for sang 

Brung for brought 

I hain't got no pencil for I haven't a pencil or I have no pencil 

2. Pronoun errors 

Them girls for those girls 

3. Faulty pronunciations 

Dunno for don't know 

Thinkin' for thinking 

Runnin' for running 

Readin' for reading 

Writin' for writing 

4. Colloquialisms 

I will bring it to her for I will take it to her 

I left it to home for I left it at home 

This is all the farther I can go for This is as far as I can go 

This is all the larger it ever grew for This is as large as it 



ever grew 



Method 



A few minutes drill on correct verb and pronoun forms, pronunciation, 
and articulation must be given daily throughout the primary and inter- 
mediate grades. Some teachers will not find it necessary to allow any 
special time for this as they will work it in the morning exercise period, or 
while waiting for the bell for dismissal, or in some odd moment of the day. 
However, most teachers, particularly those young in the work, should have 
a specified time for it, or in all probability it will be neglected day after day. 
The first five minutes of the regular language period is the logical time for 
it. In rural schools of not more than fifteen or sixteen pupils teachers 
will find it to the advantage of every one concerned to resolve the entire 
school into a "Committee of the Whole" for the daily language drill. Some 
of the errors that are common to first grade children no doubt will be heard 
in the seventh and eight grades too, and the older pupils enjoy simple 
games such as are suggested for the lower grade language drill as well as do 



47 

the younger children. When all grades in the school are studying the same 
errors the pupils often act as self-appointed English critics of one another 
during recess and noon periods and friendly disputes about what is correct 
or incorrect often arise among the children themselves. A regular period 
of perhaps ten minutes in length can be set aside, and more can be accom- 
plished in this, all working together, than in three or four minutes spent 
with each class individually. There will be times, however, when classes 
should work by themselves. 

A record should be kept of the errors eliminated in any one grade so that 
the following teacher may hold the pupils rigidly to the correct form of the 
word or expression. To ignore the work of a preceding teacher is, in the 
first place, unprofessional, and in the second place, it is very bad for the 
child from the standpoint of habit formation. 

It is not necessary to use mispronounced words and colloquialisms in 
games. Plain drill work will correct them more quickly and probably 
more thoroughly than the most interesting game. There may be placed 
on the board a list of four or five words or expressions commonly mis- 
pronounced by the pupils and a few minutes spent on them every day for a 
month. Then others may be put on the board. Review of all should be 
given quite often, conducted in the form of a game or contest if it is so 
desired. 



Models 

/ HAVEN'T ANY or I HAVE NO instead of I HAIN'T GOT NO 

The teacher explains to the children that for this game of borrowing each 
child is to have some small article that he can lend concealed in his hand or 
wrapped in paper. The point of the game is to get the children to say 
/ haven't any or / have no instead of / ain't or hain't got no. The teacher 
writes the two expressions / haven't any and / have no on the board in large 
script. Then when the children in the interest of the game forget and say, 
/ ain't got no she merely points to the board and the child says either of the 
correct forms that he chooses. The game proceeds in this manner: The 
teacher asks for things that the children do not have, except occasionally 
for variety's sake when she may ask for something that she knows they do 
have. 

Teacher. May I borrow your apple. A? 

A. I haven't any apple. 
Teacher. May I borrow your apple, B? 

B. I haven't any apple. 

The teacher may continue asking for apples until she happens on a pupil 
who has one or, if she prefers, she may ask each individual for a different 
object. In case the pupil has what the teacher asks for he says, "Yes, you 
may borrow my ." For that reason this game may be used in the fol- 
lowing grade to teach the use of may instead of can. 



48 
A DRILL 

A game that may be used to drill on the correct form of any expression 
is conducted like this : The expression is written on the board ; for example, 
"I was there. Were you there?" All the children read it in concert and 
individually. The teacher erases it and calls on some of the slower ones to 
see if they can say it correctly. If so, all is ready for the drill. The 
players stand in a circle with one to act as leader in the center. As he calls 
the name of a child that player endeavors to repeat the expression correctly 
before the leader can count ten. If any player misses, he takes the plaice 
of the leader within the circle. 



Written Work 
COPYING FROM MODEL 

Material 

Use any of the following material that will serve as a review of the use of 
the capital letter at the beginning of a sentence and the period or the ques- 
tion mark at the end; and that will familiarize the children with the fact 
that "I" and "O" are always capital letters and every line of poetry begins 
with a capital letter. A few commas should also appear in the models to 
be copied but their use need not be explained yet. 

1. A group of two or three sentences from the reading lesson 

2. Two or three related sentences about the objects or animals studied 

in the nature work 

3. A short interesting paragraph from a story or a desciiption 

4. A short stanza from a poem or a memory gem 



Method 

The copying may be done directly from the text or other book except 
when the model pertains to the nature study work. Then the teacher must 
of necessity write the model. 

R Letter cards may be used for some of the copy work this year. as spelling 
is introduced and the children are familiar with all the letters. 

Besides the period and the question mark, the comma, apostrophe, and 
an occasional semicolon should appear in the models to accustom the 
children to their appearance and to train them to be observing. The use 
of none of the last three named need be explained in this grade. Do not 
mark a paper Perfect unless every mark that appears in the model is copied. 
Be sure that other marks of punctuation than those mentioned do not 
appear in the models. 

Insist that the papers handed in for any written exercise be uniform in 
size. 



49 



Models 







A page taken from an A B C book made by a second grade pupil. The 
legend was copied from the board. 



50 




Iroiih 






\y >L ^ ^Ju<JiA^ouajLf qS/oci/?v Sj\xmf ZKJrJinyi/ 



.^A page taken from a "Day" book made by a second grade pupil. The 
legend was copied from a model on the board. 



il 




Stanza copied by a second grade pupil. 



52 

WRITING ORIGINAL SENTENCES 
Material 

1. Questions or statements about objects in the schoolroom or school 

yard, or about the material discussed in a conversation lesson. 

2. Questions or statements about a story or a poem previously studied. 

Method 

Original sentence-making should be begun in September. Word cards 
should be used first so the children will need be concerned only with the 
sentence itself and the words in it and not with letter forms. This may 
be followed by using letter cards and the fourth month, at the latest, should 
find second grade pupils doing their original sentence-making in Awiting. 

The pupils should not be expected to use other marks of punctuation 
in their original work than the period and the question mark. The sen- 
tences should always be begun with capital letters. 

Models 
Second grade original composition work. Third month. 







Second grade original composition work. Eighth month 



53 



THIRD GRADE 

WHAT TO DO 

1. Help the pupils to talk in their recitation work without restraint or 
self-consciousness. 

2. Help them to begin to form the habit of concentrating their minds 
on the subject in hand and of thinking on it in a straight line. 

3. Show them that one's conversation or recitation is more interesting 
if the sentence type is varied. Use the question, the exclamation, and the 
complex sentence. (It is not necessary to speak of these things technically; 
use models.) 

4. Insist that they enunciate clearly and pronounce their words correctly. 

5. Work steadily to correct their language errors. 

6. Make both the oral and the written language work as appealing as 
possible to them. 

MATERIAL AND METHOD 
Oral Work 

ORIGINAL COMPOSITION 

CONVERSATION LESSONS 

More effort made this year to treat a subject logically. 

OBSERVATION REPORTS 

Longer than last year's and stated more logically. 

ORIGINAL STORIES 

From two to six sentences in length. 

DESCRIPTION 

Descriptions containing fitting words, two or three sentences long. 

POEM STUDY 

Previously memorized poems frequently reviewed. One memorized 
each month this year. 

STORY REPRODUCTION 

. Most popular old stories reviewed. At least one new story retold 
or dramatized each month. 

PICTURE STUDY 

Five more pictures studied. 

LANGUAGE DRILL 

Conducted daily to correct errors in English. 



54 
Written Work 

COPYING FROM MODEL 

Poems and paragraphs containing statements, questions, and ex- 
clamatory sentences; sentences containing series of words; and sentences 
containing blanks to be filled with proper word forms. The new marks 
of punctuation for this grade are the exclamation point and the comma 
in a series of words. 

DICTATION EXERCISES 

A few sentences at each exercise, containing marks of punctuation 
mentioned in Copying from Model. 

ORIGINAL COMPOSITION 

LETTER-WRITING 

Simple friendship letters three or four sentences in length. 

ORIGINAL STORY-WRITING 

Stories three or four sentences in length. 

VERSE-WRITING 

Rhymes and verses of two to four lines. 



Oral Work 
ORIGINAL COMPOSITION 

CONVERSATION LESSONS 

Material 

The conversation lesson as an end in itself should not be continued after 
the first half of this year. The conversation method, however, may be 
used in all subjects, more or less, throughout all the grades. After the 
topics suggested in first and second grades are exhausted, the following 
may be used to -supplement the teacher's list: 

(a) Nature study: evaporation — ^where the water goes, how it goes, 
examples of evaporation ; condensation — ^where do the drops on a pitcher 
of ice-water in a warm room come from; dew — ^why it comes some nights 
and not others, why we do not see dew at noon; frost — how it differs from 
dew, why it comes on window panes, why trees are white on a frosty morn- 
ing; the clouds — what they are, what causes them to move; rain — where it 
comes from, what causes it to fall, use of rain; the process of freezing; 
ice; snow — shape of snowflakes, use of snow. 

(b) Good manners : at church ; toward strangers ; at the store ; at a friend's 
home; how to introduce people. 

(c) Safety first: how children can help to prevent accidents. 

P (d) The children's personal experiences: Saturday's good times, visits 
to the city, park, or museum. 

Oral geography is introduced this year, to be given two days a week. 
Although it is listed as a different subject on the daily program, it really 
is language work, and the conversation method will no doubt be used largely. 
Excellent topics for conversation lessons in geography may be found under 
third grade geography in the state course of study, and also in part two of 
the same course. 



55 

Method 

In the first two grades every effort was made to get the pupils to express 
their thoughts in clean-cut statements thus eliminating the over use of 
connectives. From this grade on, less will be said about using short sen- 
tences for it is desirable that the children gradually increase the length of 
them. This must be done without resorting to the use of "and," "then," 
and "but." The complex sentence is exactly the thing needed here. It 
will not be new work for the pupils because children, generally, begin to use 
the complex sentence in their daily talk in their fourth or fifth year. The 
only new feature about it is that they must be taught to use it consciously. 
It is permissible to call it the "how," "when," or "where" sentence in con- 
trast to the "and," sentence which they have already learned must not 
be over used. This is as much technique as is allowed, however, and some 
teachers will object to this terminology as being too technical for third 
grade children. The best way to introduce a complex sentence is by ex- 
example. When a child says, "It began to rain and we ran into the house," 
suggest to him that it is better in most cases to say, "When it began to rain, 
we ran into the house." Exercises may be given occasionally in changing 
"and" sentences into the "how" or "where" kind. The children must 
never be given the idea that "and" is always to be avoided. It is only the 
over use of it that is objectionable. 

Exclamatory sentences should be introduced by example too. When 
a feeling for these different types of sentences is once established the child 
will use them naturally. 



Model 

A CONVERSATION LESSON ON THE CARE AND PROTECTION 

OF BIRDS 

(This subject is listed under second grade. It is here discussed by a 
third grade class.) 

PupiVs part Teacher's part 

We found in our study of birds 
that they do many things for us. 
Let us talk today about what we 
1st child — We can feed them in can do for them, 
the winter. 

2nd child — We should never steal 
their eggs. 

3rd child — We can tell people not 
to shoot them with a gun. 

We have laws now forbidding 
people to shoot useful birds. There- 
fore we do not have to tell them 
that. 



56 



3rd child — Before we had that 
law, my dad put up signs on his 
farm and men didn't dast shoot 
his birds. 

3rd child — The men didn't dare 
shoot my dad's birds. 



4th child — We can build houses 
for them. 

5 th child — 1 saw a bird house in 
a park last summer. It was green 
and white. 

1st child — My sister made one 
last spring. 



She took a little box. She put 
the cover on it. Then she made 
little holes just so big (measuring) 
on the sides for windows. She 
made a bigger hole for a door. 



2nd child — I think they would 
and cats can't get them there. 



2nd child — I think they would 
rather build their nests in the bird 
house because cats can't get them 
there. 

4th child — The rain can't get 
in the nest either if it is in a bird 
house. 



"Dast" is not a real word, Robert. 
"Dare" is what you mean. Tell us 
what the men did not dare do. 

That is much better. I will 
write dare up here in the corner 
of this board and when you are 
about to say dast, think of this word. 
What else can we do for the birds? 



Think about it just a moment, 
then tell how your sister made her 
bird house. See if you can tell us 
without joining a number of state- 
ments together. 



That is fine. 

Do you think birds would rather 
build nests in a bird house than 
in a tree or bush? 

It would sound better, John, 
if you used a "why" sentence 
instead of an "and" sentence there. 
Tell us why you think birds would 
rather build their nests in a bird 
house than in a tree. 



That is much better. I wonder 
if there are other reasons. 



1st child — I have. 
5th child — I have. 



Those are good reasons, 
many of you have pet cats? 



How 



57 



3rd child — Keep the cats in the 
house. 

4th child — Some people don't 
like to have cats in the house at all. 

2nd child — Cats carry germs some- 
times. 



3rd child — I know. Put a wire 
shelf around the tree. The cat 
can't climb the tree then. 



5th child — ^We saw some in the 
park this summer. Mamma 
thought they were tables for the 
birds. 



1st child- 
next fall? 



-May we have some 



You must watch your cats very 
closely this coming summer to see 
that they do not catch birds. You 
like your pets, of course, but cats 
are not at all useful. They should 
not be allowed to kill birds that are 
useful. What can be done to 
protect the birds from cats? 



Yes, it isn't at all a good plan 
to have cats in the house. Cannot 
something else be done? 



That is just what I mean. They 
are called cat guards. They look 
like this. (Makes diagram on the 
board.) They can be bought ready 
to put on the tree or made at home. 



Feeding tables are not usually 
put up in the summer time. They 
are used in the winter when the 
snow covers the birds' feeding 
places. 



Indeed, you may. We will have 
an interesting lesson sometime next 
fall on building feeding tables for 
birds. 



OBSERVATION REPORTS 

Material 

Owing to the increase of the other oral work this year, undoubtedly there 
will not be time for more than two or three observation lessons a month. 
In fact, in the following suggested list no topics have been listed for January 
or February. Some of the work in oral geography will take the form of 
the^observation report and the teacher should be as much concerned with 
the^English used in the geography class as she is with that used in the 
language lesson. 



"58 

September After a conversation lesson on evaporation set a dish of 
water in the sun. After a day or two, report what hap- 
pened. 

A cool object like a pitcher of ice water in a warm room has 
what effect on the air that touches it? 

(After a conversation lesson on dew.) Is there ever dew on 

the ground at noon? Why? 

October What seeds are scattered by the wind and what ones are not? 

(Dandelion, milkweed, cattail, et al. are, while burdock, 

cockle, ragweed, et al. are not.) 
Observe the silhouette (or outline) of different kinds of trees 

against the sky. Report with drawings. 
The different kinds of trees you pass to and from your way 

to school. 

November (After conversation lesson on frost compare dew and frost.) 
Where may frost be seen? (On ground, trees, and window panes.) 
Why? 

December What happens to water when it freezes? (Have children 
actually see that it expands.) 
Observe how water freezes. (In scattered needle-like forma- 
tions which in time form a solid block.) 

March The changing position of the weather vane in twenty-four 

hours. 
The change in position of a shadow throughout a day. 

April A spider's web or a spider spinning a web. 

Markings of several birds. 

May Spring flowers that grow in marshy places. 

Flowers that grow on high land. 

June Colors found in different kinds of flowers such as lilies, roses, 

irises, daisies, etc. 

(But very rarely are more than tw-o of the primary colors to 
be seen in any one species.) 

Method 

The Method is not different from that described in the first and second 
grades. 

Give more attention to forming the habit of treating a subject logically, 
i. e. of beginning at the beginning. A few^ observation reports worked out 
in class emphasizing this point will make it clear to the pupils that it is 
important that a report be given logically. 



Models 

When water freezes it takes up more space. We put some water in 

a glass yesterday. It froze last night. When we came this 

morning the glass was broken. 
On my way to school I pass tw^o oaks, three maple trees, and one 

cedar. One of the oaks is much larger than any of the other 

trees. 



V 

c. Billy and I marked where our shadows fell at first recess. We 
stood in the same spot this afternoon and marked them again. 
They were almost opposite. 

ORIGINAL STORIES 

Material 

The original story affords a splendid opportunity for self-expression 
and for training the imagination. The pupils of this grade need both. 
Although all of the original stories in this grade are to be imaginative, 
the teacher should see that they are within the realm of reason. She 
should teach the children to keep fact and fancy distinct. 

Five or six attempts during the year at original story work are sufficient 
for this grade. The following material is suggested: 

Endings to stories 

Make-believe dreams 

Impersonations of a fairy, witch, gnome, or other fanciful character 

Method 

To begin with "stories to be completed" is undoubtedly the best way 
to introduce original story work. If the stories chosen for this purpose 
are of the right kind, the children will be eager to complete them. Thus, 
the first essential for successful original story composition — desire to do it 
— is accomplished. The story work should at first be the result of the com- 
bined efforts of the class. ' In this way the second essential for story-writing 
— to find pleasure or fun in it — is accomplished. Some language textbooks 
contain excellent stories to finish. The teacher may supply others from 
interesting incidents in her own life. 

Make-believe dreams also appeal to children. At the direction of the 
teacher all pupils put their heads upon their desks and think out a dream 
which later they tell the class. To obtain desirable results, how^ever, 
they should be given a subject and all should dream about the same sub- 
ject. Exaniples of subjects that have been used successfully are : (a) Dream 
that as you were about to pluck a flower on the way to school this morning 
you saw a tiny fairy sitting on the edge of it. What did she say and do? 
(b) Dream that you took a trip in a balloon. What did you see? (c) 
A bird came into your bedroom and talked to you. What did he say? 
(d) Dream that you foynd a ring on your way to school. As you picked 
it up a voice spoke to you. Tell who was speaking? How did the ring 
happen to be in the road? 

In impersonations, children are asked to imagine that they are a witch, 
dwarf, fairy, etc. One teacher handled the impersonation of fanciful 
characters very well in this way: The day previous to the lesson, she 
assigned secretely each pupil a character to represent the next day. 
For instance, one boy was to be a dwarf, another a troll ; one girl was to be 
a fairy, another a witch. At the recitation period, the teacher introduced 
them in turn to the others, and each told where he lived, what he did, 
and any other statement that he could make concerning himself. A month 
or so later she had the same characters impersonated again but this time 
by different members of the class. After having the characters imperson- 
ated the third time the teacher decided to use this exercise as a number on 



60 

the program for a patrons' meeting. For that event, the children rehearsed 
their talks a few times but no attempt was made to have them give set 
speeches. Proper costumes were made and so attractive a feature was it 
that no number on the program received greater applause. 

• Models 
A STORY TO FINISH 

It was past midnight and the doctor's family were all in bed asleep. 
Suddenly a loud knock was heard at the door. Then came another — 
and another, louder and even louder. The doctor jumped out of bed and 
began to dress. The knocks on the door became so violent that the mother 
and children, alarmed, rushed from their rooms to the hall where they stood 
shivering and frightened. The doctor opened the window and called, 
"Who wants me. Who is hurt or sick?" A gruff voice answered, "No 
one, but we want — " then the knocking began again and the doctor ran 
down stairs. 

"Oh, don't go down stairs," said Marion. 

"No, don't," said all the others. But the doctor was down stairs open- 
ing the door by that time and — 

IMPERSONATIONS 

I am a gnome. I live in a cave. I do not like the daylight. I like to 
make trouble for people. I do not have many friends. 

I am a fairy. I help people to be good. No one can see me but I can 
see everybody. I like children and birds and flowers. 

I am a fairy. I live in a beautiful lily. My wings are made of silver 
gauze. I sometimes ride on the back of a butterfly. 

DESCRIPTIONS 

Material 

Descriptions are introduced this year. By means of them, the teacher 
will teach the value of choosing apt words. One or two lessons a month 
should be devoted to this work. Below is listed a few suggestive topics 
with some of the words to be used in connection with them. One cannot 
proceed far in description without need for such form words as cylindrical, 
spherical, circular, rectangular, oval, etc. The first three, cylindrical, 
spherical, and circular should be explained in this grade and the children 
taught to use them whenever possible. Other descriptive words such as 
concave, convex, transparent, compact, elastic, should be taught one at a 
time, and not too many in any one year. 

Topics that require one of the suggested form words 

An apple — spherical, shiny, smooth, flavor, red (yellow or green), 

polished. 
A rubber ball— spherical, hollow, light, elastic, bounds. 
A stick of candy — cylindrical, striped, sweet, sticky, brittle, hard. 
A pencil— cylindrical, slender, graphite, tube, painted, sharpened, 

eraser, 



\ 61 

A silver dollar — circular, flat, engraved, notched, heavy. 
A plate — circular, concave, decorated, luster, rim. 
A snow-ball — spherical, compact, glistenmg, cold. 
A tumbler — cylindrical, decorated, empty, glass. 
A ring — circular, golden, engraved, settings. 

Miscellaneous Topics 

Sleigh bells — jingle, merry, cherry, clearly, frosty. 

Skates — steel, bright, shiny, runner, smooth, sharp, curved. 

A fog — ^vapor, moisture, gray, cold, damp, mist. 

A rainy morning — damp, raw, wet, gloomy, splashing, dripping, pool, 
puddle, condensation, evaporation. 

A sunshiny morning — bright, balmy, fragrant, merry, rippling, spark- 
ling, dance, twitter, chatter, dart. 

Grass — soft, velvety, short, green. 

Flowers — fragrant, pretty, gay, white, closed, bouquet, perfume. 

Method 

All new words to be used in these descriptions should be developed in a 
word study lesson previous to their use in language work. Whether all 
the words of a group, such as circular, spherical, or cylindrical, should be 
developed in one lesson, or one at a time, must be left to the teacher's 
judgment. After the meaning of the words has been explained, the mean- 
ing of circular for instance, help the children to find objects in the room 
that are circular — a ring, a bracelet, a plate, the cover of the lunch pail, 
an inkwell top, or the top of a jelly glass. After this study the children 
will see how inadequate the word round is in description. One cannot 
tell whether the object is round and flat, or round and tall, or round in all 
its dimensions, while these new words give the exact picture. 

To create and maintain interest in this prosaic work make the assignments 
as appealing as possible to the small child. The following is an example 
of an assignment that will, in most cases at least, inspire the third grade 
child to work: 'T have in my hand four fine new pencils. I shall lay them 
on this desk. For your language lesson I wish you to choose the pencil 
you like best, examine it carefully, and prepare yourself to tell us in the 
language lesson two things, or three if you wish about that pencil. On the 
board (indicating the space) I have written several words that you know 
and I want you to use some of them in your description." 

Models . 

(a) An apple is spherical in shape. The one I had was red. I made 

it shiny by polishing it. 

(b) Apples are spherical in shape. Some are red and some are yellow. 

Some have a sour flavor and some are sweet, 

(c) A plate is circular in shape. My mother's best ones are decorated 

in gold. 

(d) A plate is circular in shape. Ours have blue decorations on them. 

They are concave and that keeps the gravy from running off^. 



62 

POEM STUDY 

Material 

Review thoroughly previously learned poems and quotations. It 
is a grave mistake for teachers to neglect doing this. Half the value of 
memorizing poetry will be lost if a teacher neglects to review thoroughly 
all the poems the children have learned before entering her room. From 
the following list make selections to study this year. Have one memorized 
each month; also a few suitable quotations. 



Poems to be studied 

A Boy's Song *(8) (9-Bk. 2) (10) (13) James Hogg 

,The Lost Doll (1) Chas. Kingsley 

Suppose (3) Phoebe Gary 

America S. F. Smith 

The Children's Hour (1) H. W. Longfellow 

Hiawatha's Childhood (9-Bk. 3) (13) H. W. Longfellow 

Marjorie's Almanac (3) (8) (10) Thomas B. Aldrich 

Thanksgiving Joys (2) Unknown 

It is Coming (2) ^Will Carleton 

Christmas Everywhere (l-5th gd.) PhilHps Brooks 

Christmas Hymn (Cradle Hymn) (8) (12-Bk. l)._Isaac Watts 

Quite like a Stocking (2) Thomas B. Aldrich 

The Twenty-Third Psalm (1) The Bible 

Child's Evening Prayer (1) S. Baring-Gould 

The Land of Story-Books (1) R. L. Stevenson 

Speak Gently (9-Bk. 3) (12-Bk. 1) Bates 

The Raggedy Man (-1st gd.) J. W. Riley 

The Duel Eugene Field 

"One, Two, Three" (8) (12-Bk. 1) H. C. Bunner 

Wishing (8) (12-Bk. 1) (13) Wm. Allingham 

Pippa's Song (l-5th gd.) Robert Browning 

The Night Wind (l-2nd gd.) E. Field 

The Wonderful World (The Child's World) (8) 

(9-Bk. 3) (12-Bk. 1) (15) W. B. Rands 

The Bluebird (1) Emily H. Miller 

Sir Robin (2) Lucy Larcom 



Poems to be read to the pupils 

The One Hundredth Psalm The Bible 

The Fairies of the Caldron-Low *(8) (9-Bk. 4) 

(12-Bk. 1) (13) Mary Howitt 

I Live For Those Who Love Me (9-Bk. 3) (12- 
Bk. 1) G. L. Banks 

The Wind and the Moon (9-Bk. 4) (12-Bk. l).___Geo. Macdonald 

The Wind in a Frolic (8) (9-Bk. 4) Mary Howitt 

The Voice of the Grass (1) Mary Howitt 

Who Stole the Bird's Nest? (2) (3) (9-Bk. 2) Lydia M. Child 



*The numbers refer to Sources of Poems, page 135. 



68 

Method 

The pupils in this grade are able to read for themselves the poems to be 
studied but those to be memorized should still be read or recited by the 
teacher, and the memorizing be done through hearing the poem rather than 
through reading it. The result is better when this method is followed. 
The children's attention is centered upon the sound of the poem and the 
pictures it contains, as it should be, rather than on the appearance of the 
words and lines. Poetry was written to appeal to the ear, not the eye. 

There should be less concert work in this and the following grades. 
However, often during the day a few odd minutes may be found when con- 
cert recitation of poetry may be given to advantage. An increasing 
amount of the memorizing should be done by the Whole method. Simple 
outlines should be placed on the board to help the pupils memorize. 

Help the pupils to enjoy the music and rythm of poetry but never allow 
a sing-song rendering of a poem. 

Continue the plan of using the poems studied in the language work for 
morning exercises, mothers' meetings, or school entertainments. To 
give variety, a poem of four stanzas may easily be made into an exercise 
for four pupils, or a poem such as "The Children's Hour" or "One, Two, 
Three" may be dramatized or pantomimed. 

The way to teach a child to love a poem is to know it and appreciate it 
thoroughly yourself. 

Model 

THE WONDERFUL WORLD 

Great, wide, beautiful, wonderful World, 
With the wonderful water round you curled, 
And the wonderful grass upon your breast, 
World, you are beautifully drest. 

The wonderful air is over me, 
And the wonderful wind is shaking the tree — 
It walks on the water, and whirls the mills, , 
And talks to itself on the top of the hills. 

You friendly Earth, how far do you go. 

With the wheat-fields that nod and the rivers that flow, 

With cities and gardens, and cliffs and isles. 

And people upon you for thousands of miles? 

Ah! you are so great, and I am so small, 

I hardly can think of you, World, at all; 

And yet, when I said my prayers to-day, 

A whisper within me seemed to say, 

' 'You are more than the Earth if you are such a dot ; 

You can love and think, and the Earth cannot." 

— William Brighty Rands 



64 

Preparation 

You have learned in geography this year that this earth is an immense 
ball^ — so large that millions and millions of people live on it, and great wide 
oceans and continents thousands of miles long spread over it. And oh! 
there are so many wonderful things about this world besides its size. In 
some places there are mountains so high they touch the clouds, and then 
there are caves deep down, down into the earth. In some places there 
are trees so large that they are as thick through as this room is wide (motions 
out the width), and others where there are no trees at all and the boys 
and girls do not know what a tree is except through pictures. It is indeed 
an immense wonderful world that we live on. I have a poem here in which 
a small boy about your size, Tom, is talking to the Earth and telling it 
how wonderful he thinks it is. I think he must have been standing out in 
a meadow all by himself as he looked around at the trees, sky, and grass. 
I know you would like to know what this little boy said to the World. 



Pupil's Aim To study what the little boy said to the World. 
Presentation 



Pupil's part 
(Children listen.) 



Yes. 



Yes. 



Water. 

It is useful. 

It is beautiful. 

It isn't alive but it can move. 

We need it to drink. 

Boats sail on it. 

Fish live in it. 

It makes the grass, trees, 
flowers grow. They couldn't 
without it. 



and 
live 



Teacher's pari 

(She recites or reads the poem. 
The thought is rather large, there- 
fore the time should be medium slow. 
The tone should be clear, every 
syllable well enunciated, and the 
reading smooth. With her voice 
the teacher must bring out the com- 
parisons . in the last stanza. The 
rendering as a whole must indicate 
the awe and admiration that the 
child feels toward the World.) 

Do you like the sound of this 
poem? 

Could you see the little boy out 
in a meadow talking to the big 
world around him? 

(Re-reads first stanza.) 

What is mentioned first as being 
wonderful in this poem? 

What is there wonderful about 
water? 



Tell me how water is useful? 



65 



We find it in rivers and lakes. 
And lots of it is in the ocean. 
It's in springs, too. And it's in 
all the ground under us. 



Yes. 

The water in the lakes and rivers 
glistens when the sun shines on it. 
Some lakes are so clear they look 
like mirrors. 

Sometimes there are pretty white 
caps on the waves of the oceans and 
lakes. 



Because it, too, is pretty. It 
makes lawns, parks, and the whole 
world look prettier. 



Flowers, trees, moss, bushes, some- 
times frost, and in the winter, snow 
and ice. 

(Some will probably say winter, 
others spring, etc.) 



All you say is very true. Water 
is one of the necessities of life. It 
is as important as food. It is 
wonderful that a thin colorless 
liquid could be so useful. 

Is there anything wonderful about 
the number of places where water 
is found? 



Yes, and it is in the clouds above 



us. 



Do you think the lakes, rivers, 
and oceans add any to the beauty 
of the world? 

In what way? 



Our greatest artists have con- 
sidered rivers and lakes so beautiful 
that they have rarely painted a 
landscape without a river or lake 
in it. 

Then the poet says that the grass 
that grows on the earth is wonderful ; 
why does he call it so? 



It serves as a lovely green velvet 
rug for the whole world, doesn't it? 

In the last lines of the stanza he 
says, "World, you are beautifully 
drest." Besides grass, what clothes 
does the earth wear? 



At what time of the year do you 
think the World is dressed best? 

Now, in the next stanza he speaks 
of four things about the wind. Listen, 
and we will see who can tell me the 
four. 



66 



(Children listen, 
to name the four 
wind is said to do.) 

(Children listen.) 



Yes. 



then volunteer 
things that the 



(Children listen.) 

The boy can love and think. 



(Children listen.) 



(She reads second stanza.) 



(The teacher reads third stanza.) 

When you were small, in the first 
grade, didn't you think that the 
world ended over there where the 
sky seems to meet the earth? 

Then when you grew older, you 
found it didn't but that it stretched 
on and on ever and ever so far. 

(She reads fourth stanza.) 

What is the reason the poet gives 
for saying the little boy is really 
more than the great world? 

Yes, this great world of ours is 
wonderful and it's beautiful but 
it can neither love nor think. To 
be able to do that makes the boy 
greater than the world. 

(Teacher reads entire poem once 
more.) 



If the teacher decides that the pupils are to memorize this poem, she 
may use either of the two plans outlined in grade One under Poem Study. 

The following simple outline may be placed on the board as an aid in 
memorizing — 

Stanza L Great World; water; grass; how dressed. 

Stanza II. Wonderful air; what it does to the tree; the water and the 
mills; where it talks to itself. 

Stanza III. Friendly Earth; its size; wheatfields and rivers; cities et cetera; 
people. 

Stanza IV. Size of the World and the boy ; when a whisper spoke to him ; 
what it said. 



STORY REPRODUCTION 

Material 

Continue to make the children familiar with many stories. If the time 
in the regular language class is limited, use the morning exercise period 
and intermissions on stormy days. Do not forget that the child's life is 
broadened and enriched by every classic story he hears or reads; also that 
through these stories he is enlarging his vocabulary, developing his imagina- 
tion, and his school days are made pleasanter. In this and the following 



67 

grades the children, in increasing proportion should reproduce stories ^rom 
their own reading of them. 

Fairy (and wonder) tales 
Hans in Luck *(7) 
The Nightingale (2) 
Prince Cherry (2) 

Prince Harweda and the Magic Prison (4), 
Dick Whittington and his Cat (14) (17) 
East O' the Sun and West O' the Moon. (6) (11) (12) 
The Tongue-Cut Sparrow (3) (9) 
The Fisherman and His Wife (7) 

Fables 

The Fox and the Grapes (4) (14) (16) 

The Goose that Laid the Golden Eggs (14) 

The Country Mouse and the City Mouse (2) (10) (14) (16) 

The Larks and her Young Ones (14) (16) 

Myths 

The Legend of the Dipper (9) 

The Great Bear and the Little Bear (4) 

Pandora (The Paradise of Children) (20) (21) 

Rhoecus (22) 

Apollo and Daphne (Daphne) (13) 

The Story of Phaeton (9) (13) 

Folk tales and legends 

The Brahmin, the Tiger, and the Jackal — Hindo animal legend (2) 

The Rat Princess — ^Japanese animal legend (1) 

The Straw, the Coal, the Bean— Folk tale (4) (7) 

The Burning of the Rice Fields (1) 

The Legend of St. Valentine (George Primary Plan Book) 

Just So Stories (Rudyard Kipling) 

Bible stories 

David and the Giant (I Sam. Chap. XVH. -32-55) (32) 

The Friendship of David and Jonathan (I. Samuel Chap. XX) (32) 

The Story of Jairus' Daughter (Matt. Chap. IX:18-27) (1) 

True stories of modern times 

The Finding of the New World (Any elementary history) 

The First Printing Press (Some readers contain this material. Books 

of inventions do also.) 
Benjamin Franklin and his Kite (An elementary history or reader) 
The Making of the First Flag (An elementary history or reader) 
Stories of Washington and Lincoln (An elementary history or reader) 



* The numbers refer to Sources of Stories, pages 135. 



68 

Method 

Study carefully Story Reproduction in the preceding and succeeding 
grades. 

One very interesting variation in the retelling of stories may be made by 
using the sand table (or any low table or a bench) as a stage, and paper 
or bottle dolls as the characters, and causing them to enact the parts while 
the story is being told. Of course it will be necessary for the teacher to show 
the pupils by example how to tell the story and at the same time manipu- 
late the actors. If there are several characters or considerable action the 
teller may have assistants to help make the doll actors do their part. 

Children take great delight in retelling stories by this plan. It can be 
used in the preceding grade as well as in this one if the teacher feels the 
need of introducing a new element in the retelling of stories. The bottle 
dolls are bottles of various sizes dressed up as men, women, and children. 
The advantage of using them is that they stand firmly where they are 
placed. (For further information concerning the bottle dolls and how to 
use them see Manual of Stories by Wm. Byron Forbush.) 

In this grade it is not too early to begin to train the children to listen 
attentively — even though they know the story that is being told and to 
think discriminately so they can assist the teacher in making some definite, 
helpful statements on the telling of the story. To be helpful, some of the 
comments will necessarily be adverse criticisms but they must be made 
as sparingly as possible. The children should understand that the object 
of criticism is to help them tell a story better next time. Knowing this, 
they will take the adverse criticism more kindly. There is no greater time- 
killer than a story hour in which one pupil after another tells a story to an 
audience that sits passively listening to them with no idea of contributing 
anything that will help the teller. 

Objectionable mannerisms such as twirling a handkerchief, playing with 
the fingers or a pencil, or swinging the body are to be tactfully eliminated. 

Model 

While the story is being told as follows the teacher causes the doll actors 
to play their parts on the sand table stage. The parenthetical expressions 
suggest the movement of the actors. 

The sand table is made to represent a portion of Japan. At one end is 
the home of the little old man and the little old woman. Near them is 
the home of the cross old woman; a short distance away from the house 
there is a bridge beyond which lie some mountains. The characters — 
the man, the old woman, the cross old woman, the sparrow, the bat, and 
the hare — should be placed in the proper places for the beginning of the 
story. Small models of the animal characters or pictures of them may be 
used. 

THE TONGUE-CUT SPARROW 

A long time ago there lived in a little village of Japan a little old man 
and his little old wife. The little old woman had once found on her door- 
step a little half frozen sparrow. She had taken it into their house and 
warmed it and fed it some hot milk. The bird was soon revived and he 
was so thankful that at the time this story begins he v/ent each morning, 
just when the sun was coming over the mountain top, to sing to the little 



69 : 

old woman and man (moves the bird from the tree to the roof of their house) 
before they were up. 

The old man and woman were very grateful for his morning call because 
they liked to be up early and at work. Near there lived a cross old woman 
who did not like to be disturbed so early in the morning. One day she 
became so angry that she watched for the sparrow (place cross old woman 
behind the tree) and when he returned from singing to his friends (place 
bird back in the tree) she caught him and cut his tongue out (have old 
woman get the bird, then put him back in the tree). 

The poor little bird felt very sorrowful because he could never sing again 
to his kind friends. ^ Finally he flew away to his home (place the bird in his 
home away beyond the mountains). 

The kind old woman was very sad when she knew what had happened 
to her little friend. She said to the little old man, "Let's go find our friend 
the sparrow." So they started (place man' and woman on the road and 
move them onward slowly). They did not know where he lived and they 
were obliged to ask many times. After they crossed the bridge they found 
two roads and they did not know which one to take. They saw a bat 
hanging head downward from a tree taking a nap. "Mr. Bat," said they, 
"could you tell us where the sparrow's home is?" 

"Yes. Go along the road and up the mountain," said the bat. He blinked 
his eyes and was sound asleep again. 

They went along the road and up the mountain, and again they came to 
two roads. They did not know which to take ; a hare hopped out from some 
bushes just then (place hare near the road) so they asked him, "Do you 
know where the sparrow's home is?" 

"Yes. Go down the mountain and through the woods," said the hare. 

So on they went down the mountain and through the woods. Finally 
they spied a tiny house and there in front of it sat their friend, the sparrow. 
When he saw them he was very happy indeed (have sparrow go to meet 
them, other sparrows following). His wife and children came forward also 
to welcome the little old man and his wife. They all had a fine feast 
together. To please his friends still more the sparrow danced for them the 
sparrow dance (place bird on tree where he dances). 

When the sun began to sink in the west the old man and woman told 
the sparrows good bye. (So the story continues.) 

PICTURE STUD Y _ . 

Material 

Review the pictures studied in previous grades. Study five others this 
year. At the end of the year, the pupils of this grade should be able to 
recognize at least fifteen pictures. Interesting games and contests may be 
used for reviews. 

Saved — Landseer 
School in Brittany — Geoffrey 
Deer in Forest — Bonheur 
Sistine Madonna — Raphael 
The Balloon — Dupre 
Children of the Shell— Murillo 
The Sheepfold — Jacque 
Pharaoh's Horses — Herring 



70 

Method 

The chief reason for including picture study in language work is that 
children as a rule delight in them and with little encouragement will 
talk about them. Any topic that will compel children to talk freely 
is legitimate and particularly one that is as cultural as pictures. It stands 
to reason that the more familiar the children are with pictures the freer 
they will talk about them. Therefore, if possible, have the pictures mounted 
so the children may handle them. Encourage them to go to the bulletin 
board or table, select the picture they like, and take it to their seat to look 
at. One little third grade boy liked the Sistine Madonna so much that he 
often asked the teacher if he might not have it on his desk all the afternoon. 
Daily contact with good copies of the great pictures has a refining and 
ennobling influence upon the children besides stimulating them to talk 
about them. One teacher pleases her pupils and at the same time gives 
them a splendid review of pictures by conducting once a month an "art 
exhibit." She places on exhibition copies of all the pictures that the chil- 
dren have studied since. -they .entered school. They are placed low for 
little people so they can look directly at them without bending the head 
backward. Then the children spend the language period in walking 
about the room looking at the pictures. They gather in pairs and in groups 
as do grown-ups in like circumstances and discuss their favorites. The 
teacher keeps a watchful eye for the unresponsive children and by tactful 
and interesting questions leads them to talk too. 



Model 
CHILDREN OF THE SHELL 

Painted hy Bartolome Murillo 

Preparation 

Here the artist has painted two boys — one represents the Boy Jesus 
and the other his cousin and playmate, John the Baptist. In the Bible 
we are told that when a man, John the Baptist was to become a great 
preacher and tell people about Jesus who was coming later to teach them. 
John was what we call a herald. A herald always carries a banner. 

Presentation 

1. Which figure in the picture is the Boy Jesus? 

2. Why do you think so? 

3. What is he doing? 

4. Why do you think he is giving John a drink? 

5. Can you give a good reason for thinking John is tired? (His 

position would lead one to think so.) 

6. What is Jesus using for a cup? 

7. What is the shape of John's staff? 

8. Do you think the two boys look at all alike? 

9. Which do you think is the older? (John is older and larger.) 

10. Why do you think the artist put a lamb in the picture? (Perhaps 

to remind us that in the Bible Jesus is called the Good Shepherd.) 

11. Besides the lamb who is watching the boys? 



71 

12. Isn't it a beautiful idea of the artist to put angels in the clouds? 

How many can you see distinctly? 

13. Who will suggest a name for the picture? 

14. The artist called it Children of the Shell. Why do you think he 

did so? 

15. (In groups of two, have the children take the position of the two 

children in the picture. The children can easily imagine that 
a yardstick is a staff and a saucer a shell. Have each group 
study the picture carefully, then take the position without sug- 
gestion from the teacher. The rest of the class should give 
suggestions as to the way the pose may be improved.) 



1. 





DAILY LANGUAGE DRILL 






Material 


Verb errors 






Have did 


for 


have done 


Have went 


for 


have gone 


Have saw 


for 


have seen 


He don't 


for 


he doesn't 


Is broke 


for 


is broken 


Can 


for 


may 


It hain't got 


for 


it hasn't 


Pronoun errors 






His'n 


for 


his 


Your'n 


for 


yours 


Them are his 


for 


those or they are his 


Faulty pronunciations 


Dasen't for 




daren't or dare not 


Anda for 




and 


Pome for 




poem 


Cuz for 




because 


Jist for 




just 


Mor'n for 




more than 


Colloquialisms 






Leave me do it 


for let me^'dolt 


Awful 




for very 


Busted 




for broken 


Jist as lives or leaves for just as lief 


I'd ruther 




for I would rather 



Method 

No doubt it is a waste of space to tell the teachers of today that every 
recitation in which the English language is used is a lesson in language. 
Many teachers of the not so distant past, however, seemed not to know 
this fact. After conducting a twenty or thirty minute language period, 



72 

they appeared to feel that their duty to the EngHsh language was done, 
and for the remainder of the day the children spoke as they pleased without 
reproval or correction. Happily for the English language these conditions 
have to a great extent become things of the past. 

The best of all methods for teaching pure English is through the instinct 
of imitation. The teacher who speaks faultless English in a pleasing tone 
quality is sure to be consciously imitated. To the credit of children be it 
said that she will be imitated much more than the teacher whose English 
is poor. However, unconscious imitation is powerful and children will 
speak, generally, as does the teacher even though they are old enough to 
know that some of her English habits are not admirable. No teacher then 
can afford to be careless in her speech. Slang should be used very moder- 
ately if at all. It betrays both lack of culture and dearth of ideas. The girl 
who says that the lecture was swells the dress you wore to the Valentine 
party was swell, and the ice cream sundae she is eating is swell proves con- 
clusively that her vocabulary is extremely limited or that she is too lazy 
to think of an appropriate adjective. Either is sufficient to condemn her. 
Every teacher should have a burning desire to speak the purest English 
possible not only because of the fact that she is imitated by the pupils but 
because it is the mark of refinement and education. "Thy speech betrayeth 
thee." 

Models 

IT HASN'T instead of IT HAIN'T GOT 

One child leaves the room while the others think of an animal which the 
first child is to try to guess. When the leader returns he attempts to guess 
the name of the animal by asking questions about it. All of the questions 
except the last must begin with "Has it." 



Leader. 


Has it four legs? 


A. 


Yes, it has four legs 


Leader. 


Has it any fur? 


B. 


No, it hasn't any fur. 


Leader. 


Has it any hair? 


C. 


No, it hasn't any hair. 


Leader. 


Has it any feathers? 


D. 


No, it hasn't any feathers. No one ever heard of a four-U 




animal having feathers. 


Leader. 


Has it a tail? , 


E. 


No, it hasn't a tail. 


Leader. 


Has it a home near the schoolhouse? 


F. 


No, it hasn't a home very near the schoolhouse. 


Leader. 


Has it a home in the woods? 


G. 


No, it hasn't a home in the woods unless they are marshy, 


Leader. 


Is it a frog? 


H. 


Yes, it is a frog. 



73 

Drill on HAS or HAVE GONE, SEEN, and DONE 

Have the words written on the board in this manner: 



has 
(or) 
have 



gone 
seen 
done 



Have the children line up in two sides as in a spelling contest. The 
lines should be so arranged that every child can see the words on the board. 
The first child in the side chosen to hegin gives a sentence containing has 
or have gone. If the sentence is correct, the first child on the other side 
makes a sentence containing has or have seen ; then the first side uses the next 
word; and then the second side begins with gone again. If a child on one 
side makes an incorrect sentence, he must go to the other side and that side 
has a trial at the same thing. If it fails also, the member failing must go to 
the first side. The side that has the greatest number at the end of a certain 
period of time is the winner. The same sentence must not be used twice. 



Written Work 
COPYING FROM MODEL 

Material 

1. Poems that after being studied are placed on the board to be copied 

into notebooks or for the display board. 

2. Paragraphs containing questions, exclamatory sentences, words in 

series to accustom the pupil to the use of the comma in such case. 

3. Sentences containing blanks to be filed with series of words, proper 

verb and pronoun forms. 

Method 

The first new mark of punctuation to be worked on this year is the excla- 
mation mark. As it is not used very often its significance should be taught 
in a very short time. On the other hand, more attention must be given 
to the copying of a series of words. It should be explained why the commas 
are so placed at the time that the first model containing a series is given. 
For a month or two following its introduction, models containing a series 
of words should be given frequently. When one occurs in a reading lesson 
attention should be called to it. Do not use the expression, "series of 
words." "A number of objects or people" is better terminology for a third 
grade child. 

High school teachers tell us that a great percentage of their first year 
students seem to be absolutely ignorant of some of the simplest rules for 
punctuation. It is not because the matter of punctuation is difficult but 
simply because these things are not taught thoroughly enough when first 
taken up in the lower grades. There is no reason at all why the punctua- 
tion of a series -of words could not be made a habit by the time children 



74 

leave the third grade. Then if the fourth and fifth grade teachers do not 
allow them to become lax in the matter, the habit will be fixed for life. 

Be sure the punctuation of the sentences that are placed on the blackboard 
containing blanks to be filled is always correct. 

Do not give models containing other marks of punctuation than those 
suggested in these first three grades. There is a possibility if you do that 
the children will get the idea that there are marks of punctuation which 
mean nothing. This is erroneous. Only those that are needed to make 
the meaning clear are used by careful writers of today. 

Acquaint the pupils with these technical points of written composition 
by the use of models: The margin on the page and the indentation of 
the first word of a paragraph. 

Models 
SENTENCES FOR COPYING 
How delicate that web is! 
Heigh-ho! How do they know 
Every summer to build them so? 
Oh! How I wished you were there. 

A STANZA FOR COPYING 

(This model happens to contain both an exclamation-sentence and a 
series of words.) 

October gave a party! 

The leaves by hundreds came, 
The Ashes, Oaks, and Maples, 

And the leaves of every one. 

DICTATION EXERCISES 
Material 

Simple sentences involving the marks of punctuation mentioned for this 
year's work — question and exclamation marks ■- id commas used in a series 
of words. 

Method 

Dictation work should be given at least once a week. It should never 
consist of more than three sentences at one time and they should be chosen 
with care. They should demand an application of the principles of capi- 
talization and punctuation developed in the copy work. 

Models 

SENTENCES THAT HAVE BEEN USED FOR DICTATION 
EXERCISES FOR THE THIRD GRADE 

There are fish, tadpoles, and shells in our aquarium* 
Bessie, Eva, and I gathered flowers yesterday. 
Hurrah! Our side won! 
When do cherries get ripe? 
What a large dog that is! 
*(The teacher wrote aquarium on the board for all to see.) 



75 
ORIGINAL COMPOSITION 

LETTER-WRITING 

Material 

Simple friendship letters to mother or father, brother or sister, some 
other favorite relative, or chum. 

Method 

During the second month of school introduce the subject of letter-writing 
through as interesting a presentation as can be made. Show the children 
this form to use: 

October 5, 19 

Dear , 



Your friend, 

(Name) 



Have it placed correctly and neatly on the board where it may be visual- 
ized as the teacher explains simply the use of the different parts. Use no 
technical names other than date, greeting, body, and closing. Do not 
insist that the children memorize them. Casually use them yourself and 
in a few days the children will be using them naturally. The best way to 
show them the meaning of the term margin is to display two or three 
letters having a margin and others in which it is omitted. Do not leave the 
study of the form of the letter until every child knows it perfectly including 
the correct punctuation. When this stage is reached allow the class 
working together to compose the body of a letter. After two or three have 
been worked out in class, the pupils will be prepared to write their own. 
Ask for no more than four sentences in this grade. During the last two 
months of this year plan to have each child write and actually send at least 
two letters to some friend or relative. The addressing of envelopes must 
be introduced then. The children will delight in doing this and will grasp 
it quickly. Use this form: 



76 



NAME OF PERSON 

Street Address (if any) 
TOWN OR CITY 
R. F. D. (if any) State 



Models 

February 26, 1919. 

Dear Joe, 

Father gave me a bicycle for my birthday. 
It is a dandy. I shall learn to ride it as soon as the 
snow is gone. 

Your friend, 

Max. 



(Address on evelope) 



MASTER JOE BLACK 



CLINTON 



R. F. D. No 1 Wisconsin 



77 

April 10, 1919. 



Dear Mother, 



Do you have good things to eat at the 
hospital? Aunt May is going to send you some cookies 
tomorrow. Daddy and I will be glad when you get 
home. It is lonesome at night. 

Your loving daughter, 

Edith. 



MRS. CARL COOPER 

Sparrow Hospital 
LANSING 

Michigan 



ORIGINAL STORY-WRITING 

Material 

The same as Material for original oral stories. 

Method 

Writing original stories should not be undertaken until the pupils have 
made three or four attempts at original story- telling and the work is no 
longer a new field to them. A lesson in written work of this kind should 
always be preceded by an oral one. Some day when there has been unusual 
enthusiasm in the oral story-telling class suggest to the children that for 
the next day's lesson they may write one of the stories that were told that 
day. It may be their own, or their chum's or the one they like the best, 
as the pupil wishes. The teacher must further stipulate that each must be 
very short — not more than three or four statements long. Children of this 
age are pleased to be given the responsibility of writing something "all by 
themselves." If only a reasonable amount of written work were always 
assigned them and that required to be short, no doubt the pleasure that young 
children find in written work would be extended higher in the grades and the 
high school. 



78 
Models 

WHAT I DREAMED I SAW ON THE WA Y TO SCHOOL 

I dreamed I saw two men fighting. The little one knocked the big one 
down. He was all bloody but he didn't die. 

I dreamed I saw a young lady riding in a w^hite carriage. She drove 
six white horses. They had gold harness on. She was dressed in white 
too. 

VERSE-WRITING 

Material 

The material must be left largely to the teacher's choice. Generally 
such subjects as the following make the best subject for rhymes and verses: 
birds, flowers, twinkling stars, a sunset or dawn, a brook, a snow storm, 
autumn leaves, special days such as Halloween, Christmas, and Easter. 

Method 

A few children just naturally express their thoughts in verse or rhyme 
when their feelings are at high tide. Some occurrence in nature that awes 
or delights them seems to free latent powers of expression. A company 
of adults and children walking through the woods came suddenly upon a 
view of a clover field in bloom. One of the children, a ten-year old girl, 
ran forward exclaiming: 

Oh Clover! How you delight the heart of me, 
Among the green, so straight and tall you grow; 
You please the eye and feed the bee 
And make the fairest picture one could know. 

All laughed at her outburst but only one seemed to feel that anything 
unusual had happened. She said to the girl, "What is the name of the 
poem you were just reciting?" "It wasn't a poem," the girl answered. 
"Well, w^hat was it? Where did you hear it?" "I never heard it". "I 
don't understand how you said it then." "It just said itself," was the only 
reply the girl could give. This is, of course, an exceptional case. Only 
very few have the experience of having things say themselves in rhyme. 
The great majority will have to be stimulated in one way or another. Some 
even then will be unable to respond. All however should have the oppor- 
tunity of expressing themselves in rhyme and rhythm. Verse-writing above 
all other forms of language expression should be spontaneous. Pupils 
should never feel forced to do so. Those who know a great deal of poetry 
and who have had it read to them from the time that they could under- 
stand anything are usually the ones who do best in original work of this 
kind. 

One of the most common ways of stimulating pupils to write "poetry" 
is to read them what poets have written on the subject that has been assigned 
them. This usually is successful. Some of the choice words and expres- 
sions, the clear pictures, and the perfect rhythm are sure to linger in the 



79 

child's memory and come to his aid as he composes his Hnes. Beginners 
often, however, need more help than this, particularly if the work is pre- 
sented before they reach the third grade. Then it is best to give them a 
suggestive line or two and have them complete the stanza. It no doubt 
will be necessary to suggest words that will rhyme with the lines already 
given. In this as in all other original work of this grade it is best to do 
considerable of the work during the recitation period, all working together. 
It gives the children confidence in their ability to make a rhyme, and they 
go to their seats interested in verse-making and determined to do as well 
as the class did collectively. In the fifth and sixth grades some attempt 
should be made to teach the children to use discriminating words — from 
a list of words that might be used, the one that expresses the meaning 
most artistically should be chosen. 

Nothing should be said about meter or other mechanics of poetry below 
the sixth grade, if then. The result is more pleasing when childlike and 
free even though not quite correct in technique. Most children have enough 
music in their make-up to help them keep the rhythm correct. 

Many, in fact most of the attempts at verse-writing will be very common- 
place but two or three lessons each year from the third grade on will be 
well worth while. It will give all a better appreciation of poetry, afford 
many of them pleasure, and in a few cases it will help to develop talent. 

Models 

The following verses were composed by second grade children in the 
Lansing public schools to accompany May baskets which they had made 
for their parents: 

Here is a May^basket 
As you can see 
Filled with May flowers 
Picked by me. 

Best wishes 
You will find 
In this May basket 
Friend of mine. 

A tiny May basket 
I give you 
Filled with flowers 
And greeting too. 

This model was composed by a seven-year old girl as she stood looking 
out the window at the first snowfall of the season: 

When old father Sun looked down, he said, 

"I'll send my blanket white 

To cover all the little leaves so bright, 

Red, brown and yellow, russet too." 

Down through the air the leaflets flew, 

Down came the snowflakes, one by one, 

Slowly, then quicker, on they come. 

And when the white blanket reached the earth, kindly he said, 

"Oh, little leaves, do not you know it's time to go to bed?" 



80 



FOURTH GRADE 

WHAT TO DO 

1. Establish a feeling of ease and freedom in all class work that is con- 

ducive to free, natural expression. 

2. Give the pupils the something to say and create a desire to say it. 

3. Continue to work for concise orderly talking. 

4. Drill continually on all marks of punctuation that have previously 

been introduced. 

5. Acquaint the children by the use of models with the following new. 

marks of punctuation: The comma before or after the name of 
the person addressed and the marks necessary for punctuating 
a direct quotation ; also the use of capital letters in titles. 

6. Correct a few more common errors in English. 

MATERIAL AND METHOD 
Oral Work 

ORIGINAL COMPOSITION 

ORIGINAL STORIES 

Endings to stories and short fables. 

DESCRIPTION 

Longer ones consisting of from three to five sentences. Conundrums 
used occasionally. 

EXPLANATION 

From four to six sentences stated in logical order. 

REPORTS ON CURRENT EVENTS 

Short reports on important news of the day. 

POEM STUDY 

All poetry previously memorized should be reviewed. One poem 
learned each month; also quotations. 

STORY REPRODUCTION 

New stories studied. At least one dramatized or retold each month. 

PICTURE STUDY 

Five more pictures studied. 

LANGUAGE DRILL 

Conducted daily. Based on language errors common to this grade. 



81 
Written Work 

COPYING FROM MODEL 

Same as for third grade except that the following uses of capitals 
and punctuation marks are to be illustrated: Capital letters in titles, 
comma used before or after the name of the person addressed, and 
the marks used in writing a direct quotation. 

DICTATION EXERCISES 

To apply and test results of preceding lessons on punctuation and 
capitalization. 

REPRODUCING STORIES IN DRAMA FORM 

Stories to be rewritten in drama form by the class working together. 

ORIGINAL COMPOSITION 

LETTER-WRITING 

Longer letters than in previous grade, 

ORIGINAL STORY-WRITING 

Based on the oral work in stories 

VERSE-WRITING 

Optional with the teacher. 

Oral Work 
ORIGINAL COMPOSITION 

ORIGINAL STORIES 

Material 

The true story should be given a place this year in original story-telling. 
Stories that the pupils' fathers, mothers, or grand parents have told them 
of earlier days will no doubt provide the best material for the true story in 
this grade. Occasionally a personal experience may be related unless there 
seems to be a tendency toward exaggeration on the part of some pupil. 
If so it will, of course, be best to omit recitals of personal experiences entirely. 
Impersonations of objects and animals to follow the impersonation of myth- 
ical characters given in the third grade can be used quite extensively. And 
another kind of story that can be composed by children of the fourth grade 
is the fable. A summary of the material for this year, with a few suggestive 
topics for some of the work, follows: 

Endings to stories 

Real dreams 

True stories of earlier days 

True personal experiences 

A Fire I Saw A Surprise for Mother 

When I Visited the City What I Am Most Afraid of 
A Joke I Played on Father A Joke on Me 



82 

Impersonations of objects in the schoolroom or yard 

The clock The flag Flowers 

A piece of coal A hat 

A piece of chalk A chair 

Impersonation of animals 
Domestic animals 
Birds 

Method 

Make very definite assignments for all story work. Give the children 
plenty of time to think over what they are to say. Insist on brevity in all 
their stories. From four to six sentences are sufficient. Keep the sentences 
fairly short. 

Through story reproduction, the children have been made familiar with 
several fables. Study some particular fable again for review. Then 
take characters and circumstances similar to those in the fable studied, 
and with them have the children make an entirely new fable. For instance, 
if The Ant and the Grasshopper was the one selected for review, place the 
following on the board before the children: 

People — ^A honeybee and a cricket. 

Time — First cold day in fall. 

The bee has plenty of food stored away. The cricket has none. 

Let the children combine their efforts to compose in class a fable based 
on the above. It would be a good plan perhaps for the teacher or one of 
the pupils to write it on the board sentence by sentence as it is composed 
that all may see that a fable has indeed been made. If The Hare and the 
Tortoise is studied, either of the following group of characters could be 
used to make a similar fable about a race: A frog and a toad; a swallow 
and an owl. In this grade do not ask the pupils to make a fable except 
as one is studied and the idea applied to other characters. 



Models 

IMPERSONATION OF A HYACINTH 

A teacher bought me at the ten cent store. She put me in the ground 
last fall. I looked like an onion then. This spring I started to find the 
light. I was very happy when I came through the ground. My leaves 
are green and I am pink. The children in the school look at me every day. 

IMPERSONATION OF A PIECE OF CHALK 

I am about three inches long. I am slender and white. I came to this 
school in a box with many brothers and sisters. The children use me to 
write on the blackboard. Sometimes they drop me and I break into many 
pieces. 



83 

A TRUE STORY TOLD BY MY GRANDMOTHER 

My grandmother lived in northern Michigan when she was a Httle girl. 
One night when she went to a neighbor's she took a pail to get some water. 
A bear came out of the woods and started to follow her home. She thought 
he wanted a drink. She left the pail of water in the road and ran. He 
stopped to drink it and she didn't see him again. 

ASSIGNMENTS FOR FABLES 

(After studying the fable, The Wise Boar.) 
People — ^A man and his neighbor. 
Time — Winter. 

Man mending his fishing net. Neighbor asks why he is doing it now. 
(After studying the fable, The Fox and The Crow.) 
People — ^A cat and a dog. 

The cat has a piece of raw meat which the dog wants very much. 
He flatters the cat. 

DESCRIPTION 

Material 

One or two lessons in description should be given each month. The 
form words to be studied particularly this year are square, triangular, and 
rectangular. 

Topics that require one of the suggested form words 

A handerkerchief — square, white, fine, thin, hem, embroidered. 

A door — rectangular, dimensions, large, paneled, wooden, varnished, 

(or painted). 
A pane of glass — rectangular, transparent, colorless, smooth, brittle, hard . 
An arrowhead — triangular, hard, Indian, flint. 
A beechnut — tiny, triangular, brown, burr. 
A flag — rectangular, emblem, freedom, liberty, national, red, white, 

blue, salute, pledge, respect, revere. 
A pennant — triangular, felt, gay, colored, souvenir, pretty. 

Miscellaneous topics 

A compass — magnetized needle, balanced, cardinal points, a magnet, 

revolve, point. 
An oyster — slippery, smooth, slimy, soft, moist, flavor. 
Bark — smooth, firm, rough, shaggy, peeling, hanging. 
A sled — frame, painted, coaster, runners, steel, smooth, shining, slide, 

coast, ride. 

Leaves — short, broad, long, narrow, blade, net-veined, parallel-veined, 
margin, stem. 

A bicycle — wheels, handlebar, saddle, pneumatic tires, pedals, air-pump, 

coast, race. 
Flowers — sepals, petals, stamens, pistil, stem. 



84 

Review topics 

An orange — spherical, juicy, pulp, skin, fragrant, flavor. 

A candle — cylindrical, smooth, waxy, wick, tallow, pliable, white, flame, 

colored. 
A bracelet — circular, golden, ornamental, engraved, design, valuable. 
Any topic that was used in the third grade. 

Method 

The work in description is, on the face of it, the most uninteresting in 
the language plan. This is because it is the most technical. The teacher 
must anticipate any feeling on the child's part that it is not interesting and 
by her own enthusiasm and clever assignments thvv'art it. The fact 
that descriptions are pictures — ^word pictures — must be emphasized. 
Impress upon the children that a description must make a clear picture in 
the mind of the listener. Show him by example how a few indefinite 
statements about an object is not a description. For instance, compare 
the following lines with the first description given under Models in this 
grade: "My father gave me a sled for Christmas. It is pretty. I like it," 
or, "It is nice." 

One interesting variation that may be made in reviews in this work is 
to have the children make their descriptions in the form of a conundrum. 
This one about a woman's purse was given by a fourth grade child. "I 
am rectangular in shape and about one inch thick. I am made in various 
colors but usually I am black. I am fastened on the side with a snap. 
I hold what all people like. What am I?" 

Another variation in review work may be made by pinning on the back of 
one pupil the name of a certain object and having the others in class describe 
this object, each one giving a statement in turn. The word arrowhead 
may be pinned to the back of a boy. One pupil may say, "It is triangular." 
Another, "It is very hard." The third, "It has killed many people and 
animals." If the boy who is It does not guess it from these statements, 
another may say, "It was used by the Indians in hunting." The children 
will have to be cautioned not to give their most suggestive statements 
first. 



Models 
DESCRIPTIONS 

(a) My father gave me a sled for Christmas. The frame is painted 
red and it is trimmed with green. It is not a coaster.' It is about a foot 
high. The runners are made of bright steel. 

(b) We have. lots of pennants that my sister brought from college. 
They are souvenirs of other colleges. They are made of colored felt. 
The prettiest one is green and gold. 

DESCRIPTIONS IN THE FORM OF CONUNDRUMS 

(a) I am triangular in shape and I am very heavy for my size. I can 
be found in every home. Most of your mothers use me every Tuesday. 
What am I? (A flatiron.) 



85 ' 

EXPLANATION • 

Material 

The observation report of the first three grades has broadened in this 
grade into explanation. This involves experience as well as observation. 
Children take pleasure in telling what they can do, and the wise teacher 
makes use of it in the language class. 

These topics are suitable for the beginning work in explanation 
How to Play Follow the Leader 
How to Play Hide and Seek 
How to Sharpen a Pencil 
How to Turn the Leaves of a Book 
How to Make a Top Spin 
How to Make a Whistle 
How to Make a Bow and Arrow 
How I Made a Rag Doll 
How to Keep the Schoolroom Floor Clean 
How to Build a Fire 
How to Pack our Books in the Desk 
How to Clean the Erasers 



Method 

Explanation demands logical thinking. To develop the habit of begin- 
ning at the beginning, then naming the successive steps in order, is one of 
the English teacher's most difficult tasks. Perhaps these suggestions will 
help her : 

(1) Select as simple a subject as possible. (For instance, the games 
chosen in the above list are those in which there are but two or three 
steps to explain.) 

(2) Advise the children not to attempt to explain something that they 
have done only once or a few times. 

(3) Tell them always to begin at the beginning. 

(4) Give them practice in making beginning sentences. What [is a 
good beginning sentence for this explanation "How I Feed My Birds." 
Somebody will suggest, "I clean his dish carefully. Then I, etc." 

(5) Emphasize the fact that they should tell one thing at a time just 
as they do one thing at a time when actually doing the thing. 

Model 

Miss told us how to turn the leaves of a book. Hold the weight 

of a book in the left hand. When you want to turn a leaf, push the right 
thumb up the page to the corner. Pick up the leaf with the first finger. 
Push it over with your hand. Go on reading as though you hadn't done 
anything. 



REPORTS ON CURRENT EVENTS 

Material 

Children are interested in the things that are discussed by grown-ups — be 
it a presidential campaign, a prohibition movement, or the formation of 
the Peace League. They are delighted to "discuss" these things at school. 
In many schools current events day or the current events class is the most 
enjoyable of the whole week's work from the child's point of view. 

Sources of material 

Current Events, 1209 People's Gas Building, Chicago, Illinois. 
St. Nicholas, The Century Company, New York, N. Y. 
Youth's Companion, Perry Mason Company, Boston, Mass. 

The latter one may be too difficult reading matter for the average fourth 
grade pupil. 

Method 

The teacher herself should assign the topics for the reports of this grade 
as the pupils are too young to chose wisely. She must tell the pupils 
definitely where the material may be found. Only the most important 
events should receive attention. Never allow the reports to degenerate 
into small partisan matters or community gossip. When some especially 
big event demands attention, the best way to take care of it is through the 
conversation method because everybody is desirous of expressing his opinion. 
At other times every child may report on a different topic, each being 
followed by a general discussion if time permits and it otherwise seems 
desirable. 

Model 

I read in our daily paper something about the President. He is going 
to take a trip all over the United States. He will stop where they want 
him and give big speeches. He is going to tell people what the Peace 
League is. I wonder if he would come here if we asked him? 

POEM STUDY 

Material 

All the poems of the previous three grades are to be thoroughly reviewed. 
After that is done satisfactorily, a poem a month and several quotations 
should be memorized. 

Poems to be studied 

September *(1) H. H. Jackson 

A Child's Thought of God (1) Elizabeth Browning 

The Miller of the Dee (1) Charles Mackay 

The Sandpiper (1) Celia Thaxter 

Hiawatha's Sailing (9-Bk. 3) (13) H. W. Longfellow 

The Frost Spirit (9-Bk. 4) __J. G. Whittier 

Jack Frost (1) Hannah Gould 



The numbers refer to Sources of Poems p. 



87 

Father In Heaven, We Thank Thee (9-Bk. 3)._R. W. Emerson 

Thanksgiving Story (2) Unknown 

O Little Town of Bethlehem (3) Phillips Brooks 

While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks by 

Night (2) (3) Nahum Tate 

The First Psalm The Bible 

Star Spangled Banner (1st stanza) Frances Scott Keyes 

The Four Things (l-7th gd.) H. Van Dyke 

The Arrow and the Song (l-5th gd.) H. W. Longfellow 

The Village Blacksmith (l-4th gd.) H. W. Longfellow 

Apple Orchard in the Spring (14) Wm. Martin 

Evening at the Farm (A Farmyard Song) (9-Bk. 

3) (12) J. T. Trowbridge 

Sweet and Low (1) A. Tennyson 

To a Butterfly (9-Bk. 3) (12) Wm. Wordsworth 



Poems to be read to the pupils 

A Lobster Quadrille (Alice in Wonderland) (8) Lewis Carroll 

The Boy is Coming Home (2) J. M. Hull 

The Blind Men and the Elephant J. G. Saxe 

Barbara Frietchie (9-Bk. 5) (12-Bk. 2) J. G. Whittier 

Casabianca (9-Bk. 4) (13) Felicia Hemans 

The Hump (Just So Stories) Rudyard Kipling 



Method 

Remember always that poem study should give enjoyment as well as 
profit. It is unnecessary to bore a child with something that does not 
appeal to him in any way when there are scores of choice poems suitable 
for each grade. 

In this and the following grades children should be led, more than they 
have been previously, to enjoy the beautiful language of poetry — the fitness 
and choice of words, the pleasing sounds in words and phrases — and to 
think of the colors and sounds that poems contain. 

Beginning with this grade too, the pupils may be given the printed 
or written form of the poem to use during the analysis of it. Never, how- 
ever, allow them to read a poem aloud until detailed analysis has been made. 
Until they have studied the poem, they do not know its dramatic situation, 
they do not know the central idea from the subordinate, nor do they know 
what emotion underlies it. Hence the reading aloud should be only 
after the selection has been studied and all these things are known. It is 
left for the teacher to decide whether the pupils of this grade should mem- 
orize the poem from the page or through the ear. Either may be done. 



Model 
See Models under Poem Study in third and fifth grades. 



STORY REPRODUCTION 

Material 

As the quantity of other oral work in language increases, the story 
reproduction must necessarily be decreased; but at least one story a month 
should be reproduced. Some of those listed in this grade are of consider- 
able length and will require several days' work. 

The teacher should use the stories in season as far as possible. She 
must by all means give the children the types that appeal to them. The 
stories in this bulletin are selected for average children. If a class is 
exceptional in any way, substitute for these the kind they prefer, providing 
the ones they prefer meet the standards of good literature. 

Beginning in this grade oral and written reproduction of stories should 
be correlated. For instance, if the children are studying the story of William 
Tell and the teacher feels that it is worthy of more study than retelling or 
free dramatization would require, she may plan a lesson or two in written 
composition on it. See Reproducing Stories in Drama Form under Written 
Work in this grade. 

Fables 

The Travelers and the Bear (See Method under this topic) 
The Talkative Tortoise (The Tortoise and the Eagle) *(2) (14) 
The Frog King (The Frogs Who Asked for a King) (2) (14) (16) 
Androclus and the Lion (17) 

Perseus and the Dragon (The Gorgon's Head) (19) (20) (21) 
The Miraculous Pitcher (Philemon and Baucis) (13) (20) (21) 

Folk tales and legends 

St. George and the Dragon (9) 

The Hidden Servants (2) 

The Pied Piper of Hamelin (Browning's poems) (1) 

William Tell (17) (23) (19) 

Bible stories 

Solomon A Wise Judge (I. Kings Chap. HI :16-28) (32) 
Isaac's Two Sons (Gen. Chap. XXVII) {?>?>) 
The Prodigal Son (St. Luke Chap XV :1 1-32) {?>2,) 

True stories of modern times 

Stories of Captain John Smith. (This and the following true stories 

may be found in any elementary history.) 
Pocahontas 

Early Days in Plymouth 
The Boston Tea Party 
George Washington as a Young Man 
Daniel Boone 



* The numbers refer to Sources of Stories, pages 135. 



89 

Hero or epic tales 

Stories of the Trojan War from the Iliad (28) 
Stories of Ulysses from the Odyssey (29) 
Theseus (9) 

Jason and the Golden Fleece (The Argonauts) (21) 
Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp (5) (Arabian Nights' Enter- 
tainments) 

Method 

The teacher of oral language should be constantly seeking materia 
and developing methods that create in the pupils a desire to talk. A sug- 
gestion that meets the hearty approval of most children is that they invite 
the next highest grade to their language class the following day. 

After it has been decided that they will send such an invitation the teacher 
asks, "What shall we do to entertain them?" She allows the children to 
suggest several things but seizes upon the one suggestion which the children 
are sure to make — that they tell a story. The teacher follows this up with 
the question, "What story shall we tell?" The children are allowed to 
state a preference but the teacher guides in making the selection so that a 
story is chosen that lends itself to treatment from the standpoint of oral 
composition. In this particular lesson the children decide on the story. 
The Travelers and the Bear. Immediately some one says, "The fifth 
grade knows that story." Here appears the teacher's opportunity for 
giving a genuine motive for the language work and she says, "Then we will 
tell them an old story in a new way." The teacher continues, "Suppose 
we compose stories to tell to the fifth grade that characters in the story of 
The Two Travelers and the Bear might tell to other people if they were 
describing the incident." 

This interests the children, and the teacher proceeds to help them in 
the preparation of the next day's entertainment as follows. 

Model 
THE TWO TRAVELERS AND THE BEAR 

Two friends were traveling and they came to a great dark forest in which 
there were known to be wild animals. However as it was necessary for 
them to pass through it, they promised that they would stand by one another 
if any danger threatened them. 

Suddenly a bear came upon them. There happened to be near them a 
pine tree and the tall man without so much as glancing at his friend, ran 
as fast as he could for it. He climbed up into it and hid among the branches. 
The other man was shorter and stouter. Knowing he could never make the 
tree, he threw himself flat upon the ground and pretended to be dead. He 
had heard it said that a bear would never touch a dead man. When the 
bear came up to him and poked him with his nose, he held his breath and 
the bear must have thought he was really dead for he walked away. Then 
the tall man came down out of the tree and he said, "I believe I heard the 
bear whisper to you." 

The other replied, "You did." 

"What did he say?" 



90 

"He told me," the short man answered, "not to travel Vr-ith^friends who 
leave me when danger comes." 

At the children's dictation, the teacher writes the names of the characters 
on the board: The bear, the tall man, and the short man. 

Then she asks: 

If the bear tells the story to whom might he tell it? One child suggests 
his wife, and another, his children. To whom might the tall man tell his 
story? To this a boy sa^^s, "He won't tell it to any one because he acted 
cowardly." If the short man tells the story to whom might it be? The 
children suggest his wife and his friends. 

Xow let's see what each character might say if he were telling the story. 
Suppose the bear were telling it to his children, what without doubt would 
be his purpose.? The children suggest that it would be to show them how 
cowardly it is to leave a friend in danger. With this help, one volunteers 
that the bear might begin his story by saying, "In my walk today I saw t^vo 
men enter the forest. They carried clubs. I heard them say that they 
would stand by one another if any wild animals came near. A short time 
after^vard I jumped out at them from behind a tree, and what do you think 
happened?" At this point the child should be stopped and told to think 
out the rest of the stor}' and be able to -tell it the next day. 

"Suppose the bear were telling this storv' to his wife would he have the 
same reason for telling it?" "Xo." If the children are unable to think 
of the correct reason the teacher may suggest, "Don't you think he might 
tell it as a funny stor\' ?" A child then volunteers that the bear might say 
to his wife, "I had a funny experience today. I have laughed over it many 
times since, etc." Then the child should be told to finish thinking over the 
ston.' at his seat and have it ready for next day. "How might the short 
man begin his story as he told it to his wife?" "Suppose some one heard 
about the affair and asked the tall man to explain his actions. What 
might he say?" 

As final advice to the children the teacher should tell them that after 
they have thought out their stories for the morrow, to test their worth this 
way : 

1. Is the story interesting all the way through? Will the fifth grade 
be anxious to listen? 

2. (If it is supposed to be a funny ston,-) Will the fifth grade laugh? 



PICTURE STUDY 
Material 

Review the fifteen pictures that have been studied during the three 
previous years. Study five others this year. 

The Lake — Corot 

Oxen Plowing — Bonheur 

Return of the Mayflower — Boughton 

Christ and the Doctors — Hoffman 

Pied Piper of Hamelin — Kaulbach 

At the Watering Trough — Dagnan-Bouveret 

Fog Warning — Homer 

Escaped Cow — Dupre 



91 

Method 

Now that the children are familiar with several pictures, interesting 
morning exercises or Friday afternoon programs can be made by reproduc- 
ing the pictures in tableaux. For instance, it is not difficult to secure a 
plump little girl for Miss Bowles, array her in a short sleeved white dress, 
arrange her hair so it appears like that of the original Miss Bowles, and 
seat her with a dog hugged closely. Nor is it difficult to represent the 
Madonna of the Chair in tableau. The First Step, The Strawberry Girl, 
Madam Lebrun and her Daughter, Return of the Mayflower, and Children 
of Charles I can also easily be used for tableaux. In some instances, the 
last named picture for example, it would be impossible to dress the charac- 
ters as they appear in the picture. The children will not mind that omission 
however. The arrangement of the figures in all instances should be very 
carefully studied. In one rural school last year the teacher appointed a 
group of children each week to represent a picture Friday morning. Some 
of the tableaux were so fine that she chose six of them for a number on her 
program for the last day of school. That the visitors might enjoy the 
pictures that were unknown to them, the school had previously prepared 
little booklets containing miniatures of the pictures to be represented. 
The booklets were given to the guests to refer to when the tableaux were 
presented and were retained by them as souvenirs of the occasion. For 
a public program a curtain is almost an essential, but for class work it is not. 
The children may merely relax from their picture position when the teacher 
tells them that the time is up. In case a curtain is used two or three views 
of the same picture may be given allowing the child relaxation spells between 
the 'View^s." The teacher should take care not put the children under a 
strain in trying to be motionless. Tell them to be as quiet as possible and 
they will be so interested in doing the picture well that they will need no 
further admonition. 

Model 

THE PIED PIPER OF HAMELIN 

Painted by H. Kaulbach 

The story of the Pied Piper of Hamelin may be told by the teacher from 
reading Browning's poem, or it may be told by one of the pupils after read- 
ing the story as it appears in Sara Cone Bryant's How to Tell Stories to 
Children. After the story has been told and a discussion of it and the pic- 
ture has taken place, the children may enjoy reproducing it by tableau 
just as a class exercise. One of the boys from a higher grade should be 
chosen for the Piper. Each child in this grade should choose a character 
that he wishes to represent from among the children following the Piper. 
The value of such an exercise lies in developing the child's ability to take 
the pose of the character he chose to represent. A pointed hat of colored 
paper and a toy horn for the Piper are all the accessories needed for the 
tableau. 

A lesson of this sort may be made to occupy two or three language periods : 

1st period — The telling of the story and a discussion following it. 

2nd period — Study of the picture (Conversation lesson). 

3rd period — Discussion of what pupils will best represent certain characters 

in the picture, what accessories are needed to make a good 

representation of the picture, etc. 



92 



1. 



4. 



DAILY LANGUAGE DRILL 
Material 



Verb errors 




Had ought for 


ought to have done it 


Set for 


sit 


Set for 


sat 


Lay for 


lie 


Laying for 


lying 


Pronoun errors 




Theirselves for 


themselves 


Father he for 


father 


Faulty pronunciation 




Kin for 


can 


Clumb for 


climbed 


Het for 


heated 


Jography for 


geography 


Wash for 


wash 


Water for 


water 


Ellum for 


elm 


Colloquialisms 




Where is the book ; 


at for where is the book 


Kind of queer 


for somewhat or rather queer 


Most through 


for almost finished or completed 


Heft 


for lift or weight 



Method 

The words and expressions called colloquialisms cannot be used in a 
game or drill to advantage. The best plan is to tell the children the correct 
form and have them repeat it several times, and use it in sentences. Some 
sort of plan should then be adopted to guard the child against using the 
wrong form. Some teachers appoint one or more pupils, according to the 
size of the class, as "policemen" or "detectives" to keep record for a week 
of those who use the expression correctly and those who still use the incor- 
rect form. At the end of the week other "policemen" or "detectives" 
are appointed. Another plan is to place all the childrens' names in a list 
on the board or on a sheet of paper kept in a conspicuous place in the room. 
A white or colored mark is made after the child's name when the correct 
form is used, and a black one when the incorrect form is used. 

It is necessary to place some sort of incentive such as is described above, 
before the child whiFe he is still too young to have any real motive for speak- 
ing well. If he can make people understand what he is saying, the average 
schoolboy is satisfied even though he breaks a half dozen laws of English 
in every sentence he utters. Some teachers are able to inculcate in children 
of fourth grade age a genuine desire to speak well but it is very unusual. 
If such a desire can be awakened even in the grammar or high school boy 
we feel quite elated. Girls usually develop an "English sense" or "con- 



93 

sciousness" before boys, but a vast majority even of that sex are more 
interested in pretty clothes than in pretty speech. If children of fifth and 
sixth grade age, at least, could be made to understand that careless, incor- 
rect English will bar them from good society as quickly as will the habit 
of eating with one's knife or going about with uncombed hair, perhaps more 
of them would become really interested in their English. 

The number of errors listed as material for any one grade looks formidable 
indeed but if the teacher centers her time and energy on one at a time she 
will be able in the five minute daily drill to correct two or three each month. 
When there is such a host of errors in the child's vocabulary, teachers find 
it difficult to work on only two or three each month. At that rate it seems 
as though the task would never be accomplished. But it is true here as in 
all work that intensive effort on one thing brings far better results than 
scattered or intermittent effort on several things. 

Model 
See models in previous grades. 

Written Work 
COPYING FROM MODEL 

Material 

1. Poems to be copied in notebooks or for display work. 

2. Paragraphs and stanzas of poems containing marks of punctuation 

learned in previous grades and the following new ones for this year's 
work : A comma used before or after the name of the person address- 
ed and the marks necessary for the direct quotation. 

3. Sentences containing blanks to be filled with the proper word forms. 

4. Unpunctuated sentences to be properly punctuated by the children 

as they are copied. 

Method 

When the children have been made acquainted with the new marks of 
punctuation through a model, allow considerable time to elapse before the 
second new one is presented. The most difficult work this year is the 
quotation. A good way to teach it is as follows: "Today we are going 
to have our first lesson in learning how to copy a new kind of sentence. 
You will find it interesting because there are several little marks to make. 
Before we put in the marks it looks almost like any other statement or 
question." (Writes on the board — Mary said The moon looks like a boat 
tonight). "Tell-iTie how it is different from an ordinary sentence." One 
child will notice the capital T which is unusual in that position, and another 
may suggest that there are really two sentences in the one. The teacher 
asks, "What did Mary say?" Some one volunteers, "The moon looks 
like a boat tonight." "Come and put your hands around the words that 
Mary said." The one designated curves her hands around the words 
indicated. "We call the words that you are enclosing with your hands a 
quotation because we quote or repeat Mary's words," the teacher explains. 
She has others put their hands around the quoted words. Then she writes 



94 

several other direct quotations on the board and has the pupils one after 
another enclose with their hands the, quoted part of the sentence. To 
make the work interesting and varied she places some of the quotations 
at the beginning and others at the end of the sentence. The children 
soon see that when the quoted words come at the beginning of the sentence 
there is no capital letter to help them. After the children have had suffi- 
cient drill in this for one day the teacher leaves it until the next day. If, 
on the next day she finds the children are quick to find the quoted words, 
she tells them this: "To make it plain to the reader which is the quoted 
part of the sentence we use little marks like these ""and the comma or 
question mark to separate them from the rest of their sentence. These 
marks you see take the place of your hands." The teacher then gives the 
children plenty of drill in placing the little quotation marks and the comma 
where the day before they had placed their hands to enclose the quoted 
words. The pupils are now able to copy direct quotations intelligently. 

Models 
Models for copying may be found In a language text. 

DICTATION EXERCISES 
Material 

Any sentences that demand an application of the punctuation marks 
learned up to date. They are as follows: 

Capitals: First letter of all sentences, first w^ord of every line in poetry, 
first word of direct quotation, the letter I. 

Commas: In a series of words, before or after name of person addressed, 
in different parts of a letter, separates quotation from rest of the sen- 
tence. 

Quotation Marks: Enclose quotations. 

Periods, exclamation and question marks: At end of sentences. 

Whenever possible one school exercise should help clinch another. There- 
fore, any of the following may also be used in the dictation exercises, it 
being taken for granted that they have been taught in word study: 

Capitals: First letter in days of the week, months of the year, names of 

cities and people. 
Hyphen: Between some compound words; divides words at end of 

lines. 
Apostrophe: Shows possession; used in contractions. 
Abbreviations: End with period; some begin with capitals. 
Contractions: Made by combining two words, example: can't- 

can not. 

Method 

Spend five minutes on dictation exercises twice a week. Two sentences 
at a time allows time for explanation and discussion concerning the correc- 
tions that are made. If the children can be restrained from copying one 
another's work, the board is the best place for dictation work. Then it is 
possible for the class to work collectively in making the corrections. 



95 

The old saying, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure," 
is very true in presenting new work in language. If the teacher finds 
many corrections to make it is proof that she did not do all she could to 
prevent them. If a thing is taught thoroughly the children will know it 
thoroughly. On the average, after a new mark of punctuation is presented 
through copy work, it should be drilled on for a month before the children 
can be expected to write it correctly from dictation. 

Form good habits in the dictation work from the very beginning. Read 
a sentence only once. You are training more than the memory when you do 
so. 

Models 

SENTENCES CONTAINING A COMMA BEFORE OR AFTER THE 
NAME OF THE PERSON ADDRESSED 

(These are actual models that have been dictated to fourth grade pupils.) 

Mother, let me do something for you. 

Alice, why are you laughing? 

Will you please help me, Miss Black? 

Dear Tom, please come with me. 

Duke, lie down! 

Why do you weep, my child? 

Come here, old boy. 

MISCELLANEOUS SENTENCES THAT HAVE BEEN USED FOR 
DICTATION WORK IN THE FOURTH GRADE 

Don't hold the pen so tightly. 
Oranges, dates, and lemons grow in Cuba. 
"I want to drink here," said the wolf. 
The cat's whiskers are long. 
Here I am, mother. 

REPRODUCING STORIES IN DRAMA FORM 

Material 
Any story listed for reproduction, or any other of the same standard. 

Method 

The pupils must first be made familiar with the story. Then if they 
decide they would like to play it the teacher suggests that instead of 
reproducing it by free dramatization they first write it in the form of a play, 
each memorizing a part afterwards. She must plan to have all the work 
of writing the drama or play done during the recitation period, all working 
together but each contributing a share. The children first decide the 
three P's as they are often designated — people, place, and properties. As 
each is decided upon, the result is written on the board by the teacher or 
pupil. Then the number of scenes that are necessary to portray the story 



96 

is discussed and settled. The conversation and acting of each scene is 
then worked out, the class still working together and some one writing it on 
the board. Much that is suggested must be rejected and some of the rest 
will have to be modified considerably^ When the pupils have their language 
stud}^ period they may copy what was written on the board, if the teacher 
so desires. If this is done each child has a copy and when the writing of the 
play is completed and the parts are assigned, each one turns to his notebook 
where he has the entire play. 



Model 

(See one of the Dramatic Readers now on the market for models for this 
work.) 



ORIGINAL COMPOSITION 

LETTER-WRITING 

Material 
Simple friendship letters of from four to six sentences. 

Method 

Letter-writing should predominate in the written original composition 
because everybody writes letters and this can be said of no other form of 
composition. Children enjoy writing letters, too, especially if they are 
allowed to write ones that may be sent. Most children of fourth grade age 
have opportunity for writing four or five real letters during the year and 
that, including the drill and review that will be given each time the matter 
is taken up, should be sufficient for this year's work. To the heading 
of the letter add the name of the place and state ; also street and number in 
a city address. 

Models 



335 Belle Street, 

Lansing, Michigan, 
June 5, 1919. 

Dear Kate, 

We are going to have our picnic Saturday. Miss 
Carlson said we could invite a friend. Will you go with me? 
I hope you can. Meet me at the interurban station at nine. 

Your friend, 

Jessie. 



97 

St. Johns, Michigan, 
May 20, 1919. 

Dear Uncle Hal, 

Father says I must earn some money this summer. 
Do you have a job for me? I can do most anything. 

Your nephew, 

Joe. 

STOBY- WRITING 

Material 
The same as for original story-telling. 

Method 

Written work should form a small proportion of the language work of 
any of the grades outlined in this bulletin. One recitation out of the five 
and three study periods out of the five are as much as any teacher should 
devote to written language work for this grade. What is given should 
follow oral work and be used only when there is a motive for it. That is 
the reason that a larger proportion of the time devoted to original written 
work should be given to letter-writing But there are motives that can be 
given for writing stories — to read at a mother's meeting or at the next 
meeting of the school club, to display at the county exhibit, to carry home 
to mother, et cetera. 

Models 

The models should be about the same as those given in the original 
story-telling except they may be shorter. 

VERSE-WRITING 

See verse-writing for third grade. 



98 



FIFTH GRADE 

WHAT TO DO 

1. Work to develop as' much as possible a real desire on the part of the 
pupils to talk and write well. 

2. Remember that the boys and girls of the intermediate grades are 
often easily embarrassed or made self-conscious. Overbalance any evidence 
of either by subject matter of such interest that it will be uppermost in the 
child's mind. 

3. Acquaint the pupils by the use of models with the following marks of 
punctuation: Those necessary in writing a divided quotation and to set 
apart a group of explanatory words. 

4. Insist on a voice quality that can be heard distinctly yet is not the 
high-pitched "schoolroom tone." 

5. Drill daily on enunciation, pronunciation, pronoun and verb forms, 

MATERIAL AND METHOD 
Oral Work 

ORIGINAL COMPOSITION 

ORIGINAL STORIES 

Endings to stories, short fables, true stories of early times or the 
Great War, and personal experiences. From four to seven or eight 
sentences in length. 

DESCRIPTION 

Must contain fitting words. Insist upon accuracy 

EXPLANATION 

From four to seven or eight sentences stated logically. 

REPORTS ON CURRENT EVENTS 

Short accurate reports on important events. 

POEM STUDY 

Poems and quotations learned in previous grades reviewed. One 
poem studied each month. Five or six poems and several quotations 
memorized during the year. 

STORY REPRODUCTION 

A review of the favorite stories of previous year's work. One repro- 
duced each month. 

PICTURE STUDY 

Five more pictures studied. 



m 

LANGUAGE DRILL 

Conducted daily. Based on language errors common to this grade. 

Written Work 

COPYLNG FROM MODEL 

Any suitable material that reviews punctuation or capitalization 
previously learned or either of these: A divided quotation or a group 
of explanatory words. 

DICTATION EXERCISES 

To apply and test results of preceding lessons on the technique of 
written work. 

REPRODUCING STORIES IN DRAMA FORM 

Stories rewritten in drama form by the class working together. 

ORIGINAL COMPOSITION 

LETTER-WRITING 

The paragraph should be introduced. Letters may consist of two or 
three short ones. The informal invitation and answer should also 
be presented. 

ORIGINAL STORY-WRITING 

Same subject matter as oral stories; somewhat shorter in length. 

DESCRIPTION 

Written description may occasionally be used. 

EXPLANATION 

Used very occasionally to follow up oral work in explanation. 

KEEPING A CLASS DAIRY 

United efiforts of the class. 

VERSE-WRITING 

Whether it will be used or not is optional with the teacher. 

Oral .Work 
ORIGINAL COMPOSITION 

OEIGINAL STORIES 

Material 
The following material is suitable for the pupils of this grade: 

Endings to stories 

True stories of the Great War 

Personal experiences 

A Good Hallowe'en Trick 

My Good Luck on a Fishing Trip 

My Greatest Surprise 

What Happened to me at the School Picnic 

My Longest Trip 

A Trick I Taught My Pet 



100 



Fables 

Stories based on pictures cut from magazines 

Stories of the Great War that the children have heard their big brothers 
or friends tell and also the stories of earlier life spoken of in the fourth 
grade are, in a way, reproduced stories rather than original stories. It 
has been thought best to place them with original story work, however, 
because the work connected with telling them is all the pupils' own. Until 
the story is given in class, no one has helped him in arranging his material 
or in phrasing it. For that reason it cannot be placed with a reproduced 
story which he has heard from the teacher's lips or has read carefully him- 
self, and which further, has been thoroughly discussed in class. 

Method 

The telling of fables should be continued. The plan explained in the 
fourth grade should be used until late in the year. Then the teacher 
need do no more than suggest the lesson that she wishes the fable to teach. 
She should allow the children to choose any. characters and circumstances 
they please to teach the lesson she suggests. That there may be no mis- 
understanding in regard to what is expected, the assignment may be stated 
like this: "Tell an original fable that teaches the same lesson as does 
The Lion and the Moused 

Magazine pictures that portray life and action are good material for 
imaginative stories. Occasionally one of a giant, a castle, or a fairy may 
be found. This type may appropriately be used for the basis of a fairy 
story. Only in rare cases, however, should fairy stories be composed, for 
to be complete, fairy stories must be of greater length than is desired in 
story work in the grades. Then, too, the element of truth that underlies 
a real fairy story is a thing that young children are not cognizant of. 



Models 
A STOR Y TO FINISH 

It was April Fools' Day and the children of Maple Gove School assembled 
early on the school lawn. There was excitement in the air. They were 
planning to play on some one the best April Fool's joke that they could 
invent. 

"Here comes Reddy," some one called as little Jack Brown came in 
sight down the road. 

"I am going to stand in the door to make him say, Tleathe let me in,' " 
said one of the larger boys. 

"It's more fun to tease him than any one else I know," said another boy. 

"Why not play our joke on him?" questioned one of the girls, not think- 
ing of the pain they would give the lisping babyish son of Mrs. Brown, 
who since her husband's death was having a most difficult time to clothe 
and feed her small family. 

"Oh, let's do," said the other boys and girls thoughtlessly. 

"But what shall we do?" asked some one. 



101 

"I'll tell you; he never has anything for lunch but bread and jelly any 
way so let's throw it away and put some grass or leaves in his basket. 
Wouldn't he be surprised when he opened it?" 

"That will be fun, we'll do it." 

The jokers filed out of the schoolroom at noon, much pleased with the 
success of their joke thus far. All as usual carried their lunch baskets 
or pails to the sheltered spot underneath a cluster of pine trees where in 
spring they were protected from the cold winds and in summer from the 
sun. All anxiously watched little Jack as he eagerly unfastened the strap 
on his basket. Some already had begun to regret their hasty action and 
they tried with down-turned faces to hide the shame that was showing in 
their eyes. A hush settled over the children as little Jack took the cover 
off his basket. How surprised the jokers were to see the eagerness on his 
face change to one of pure delight and pleasure. He put his hands quickly 
in the basket and took out — not grass and leaves — but — 

Question^^What was in the basket? How did it get there? 

AN ORIGINAL FABLE 

Board assignment: Tell a fable that teaches the same lesson as does 
The Fox and the Grapes. Think out each sentence carefully just as you 
are going to say it in class. After all are told in class we will vote which is 
the best of all. 

(Below is the fable voted to be the best.) 

, MAY AND THE RED DRESS 

Alice and May lived across the corner from each other. They were 
good friends. Both girls wanted new red dresses. May's mother got her 
a brown one instead. When Alice wore her pretty red one to school, May 
said, "I didn't want a red one any way because red fades easily." 



DESCRIPTION 

Material 

There is to be some written work in description this year along with 
the oral. Including the written work there should be three lessons on 
description each month. Two of the three should be oral. Written 
description should follow the oral, and for this year, at least it should be 
based on topics that have just previously been described orally. 

The special words to study in this grade are: conical, oval, translucent, 
and opaque. The majority of objects to be described in the lists given in 
this bulletin are those with which all children will be familiar. If there 
are listed those with which they can have no first hand knowledge, supply 
the pupils with pictures. No one can be expected to describe a thing well 
unless he has perfect percept of it himself. 

The words are listed with the object in this year's work not so much for 
the pupil's use as for the teacher. In this grade it will be well for the 
children, themselves, to select the words to be used in connection with a 
certain object. 



102 

Topics that require one of the suggested words 

A volcano — conical, crater, eruption, lava, tuff, ashes, cinders. 

A bunch of grapes — conical, grapes, purple, blue, red, green skin, pulp, 

seeds, sweet, luscious, juicy, wine, vineyard. 
An egg — Oval, yolk, shell, porous, brittle, membrane, transparent, 

elastic. 
A window shade — translucent (some of the old ones are opaque), roller, 

cylinderical, spring, brackets, raise, lower, roll. 
An umbrella — covering, silk, linen, cotton, opaque, protection, ribs, 

steel, sun, wind, rain. 

Miscellaneous topics 

A garden — loam, rich, fertile, barren, row, transplant, cultivate, weeds, 

destroy, insects. 
Bells — brass, iron, steel, jingle, chime, peal, toll, clapper, ring. 
A teapot — receptacle, porcelain, china, silver, spout, handle, decorated. 
A fur cap — kind of fur, smooth, soft, lining, interlining, warm, com- 
fortable. 
The sound of a saw — disagreeable, harsh, grating, irritating. 
The sound of the wind at night — howling, whistling, moaning. 
The taste of pickles — sharp, sour, acid. 

Scenes protrayed in the literature used in language and reading. 
The scenes that can be seen from the schoolhouse windows or door, or 

on the way to school. 
Physical appearance of the characters in stories they know. 

Method 

In the two preceding grades the object of the work in description has 
been to enlarge the child's vocabulary and to impress upon him the necessity 
for choosing words that make a vivid picture in the minds of his listeners. 
These are still the important aims, but along with them there is another 
that fifth grade children should have. They should begin to think more 
directly on the arrangement of their sentences. No doubt the teacher has 
hinted at this before and perhaps through imitating the models she has 
given, they have arranged their sentences rather well. Now they should 
be taught definitely to proceed from the whole to the parts in all their 
description work. They should state one or two general things about the 
object to be described, then describe the various parts. Give them several 
examples of general statements that would be suitable to use with the 
topics listed for this grade, such as: A teapot is a receptacle for holding 
tea while it is being served ; a volcano is a burning mountain ; an umbrella 
is a^shade or screen from the sun, wind, or rain. Then have the children 
give' examples of general statements with which to begin their descriptions. 

After the children have grasped fully the idea of always beginning a 
description with one or two broad statements, they should be taught that 
the sentences which follow must be placed in such an order that one comes 
naturally after the other. To show them the necessity for such arrange- 
ment place on the blackboard this or similar examples: 



103 

A flag is a national emblem. Flags made of wool are the most 
durable. The cotton ones fade easily. Flags are made of cotton, 
wool, or silk. Silk flags will not stand outdoor use. 

Allow the children to work this over in class. The result which will be 
about as follows, will show that the proper order of sentences is absolutely 
essential to a good description. 

A flag is a national emblem. It is made of cotton, wool, or silk. 
Flags made of wool are the most durable. The cotton ones fade easily. 
Silk flags will not stand outdoor use. 

Showing the children the wrong form is, of course, negative teaching, but 
children of an age of understanding are sometimes more impressed with the 
right way when it is contrasted with the wrong way. If the class has much 
difficulty in arranging their sentences in their right order, write some of 
their descriptions on the board as they give them and help them to better 
them. Of course, the ones that they give will be much shorter than the one 
used in illustration, and very often in short descriptions it is not necessary 
for the sentences to be in any particular order. For example, in the follow- 
ing illustration the second sentence could be placed third and vice versa 
without destroying the meaning of the description. 

A muskmelon is a sweet, delicious fruit. It grows on a vine that 
creeps on the ground. It is spherical in shape and is sandy gray in 
color. 

In the next illustration, however, a certain order of sentences is essential, 
although the description is short. 

That large oak there by the gate is very aged. One could not guess 
it by its appearance. It is as erect as its younger neighbors. It must 
be sound at heart, too, for our strongest winds are not able to break it. 

Model 

Time — The last few minutes of the fifth grade language recitation 
period. 

Teacher — Tomorrow's work will be a description. In your geography 
work you have discovered that there are several large volcanoes in dif- 
ferent parts of the world. Because of the niystery that surrounds the 
action of volcanoes, they are very interesting things to study. I want 
each of you to prepare to give orally a good description of a volcano. 
There are three very good pictures of volcanoes in your geography text. 
Study them carefully. Prepare your description as though you were to 
tell it to some one who had never seen even the picture of a volcano. We 
will make a list now of some of the words you will need for your description. 
(As the children suggest the words the teacher writes them on the board — 
conical, crater, lava, ashes, cinders, eruption, smouldering, buried, excavated, 
etc.) 



104 

EXPLANATION 

Material 

It is best to begin with as simple subjects as were used in the fourth 
grade and increase the difficulty gradually. 

How to Roast Marshmallows 
How to Clean One's Teeth 
How to Split the Kindling 
How to Thread a Needle 
How We Saulte the Flag 
How We Made a Snow Fort 
How to Ride a Bicycle 
How I Made My Kite 
How to Wash Dishes 

Method 

See Method under Explanation in fourth grade. 

The explanations given by pupils of this grade should consist of from 
four to seven or eight statements. 

Model 
See Models under Explanation in fourth and sixth grades. 

REPORTS ON CURRENT EVENTS 

See Current Events outlined for fourth grade. 

POEM STUDY 

Material 

In addition to poems, short extracts from classic addresses or other selec- 
tions from choice prose may be studied this year. Have one selection and 
one or two quotations memorized each month. 

Poems to be studied 

A Song *(15) James W. Riley 

In School Days (13) J. G. Whittier 

Today (1) Jas. Russell Lowell 

October's Bright Blue Weather (1) H. H. Jackson 

When the Frost is On the Pumpkin (2) J. W. Riley 

The Feast Time of the Year (2) Unknown 

A Christmas Carol (14) J. G. Holland 

Christmas Bells (2) H. W. Longfellow 

Concord Hymn (1) R. W. Emerson 

Lochinvar (12-Bk. 2) (14) Sir W. Scott 

The Flag Goes By (l-7th gd.) H. H. Bennett 

The Soldier's Dream (9-Bk. 6) Thomas Campbell 

Out in the Fields (1) L. H. Bailey 

Abou Ben Adhem (1) Leigh Hunt 



The numbers refer to Sources of Poems, page 135. 



105 

Sky-Born Music (1) R. W. Emerson 

Somebody's Mother (15) Unknown 

The Brook (12-Bk. 1) (13) Tennyson 

A Song in the Night (1) Geo. MacDonald 

Robert of Lincoln (3) W. C. Bryant 

Some of Poor Richard's Sayings Benjamin Franklin 

The One Hundredth Psalm The Bible 

Poems to be read to the pupils 

A Leap for Life (9-Bk. 5) G. P. Morris' 

The Inchcape Rock (9-Bk. 5) (14) Robert Southey 

The Owl Critic (9-Bk. 5) James T. Fields 

The Old Oaken Bucket (9-Bk. 4) Samuel Woodworth 

The Deacon's Masterpiece (Holmes' poems) O. W. Holmes 

Planting of the Apple Tree (9-Bk. 5) (12-Bk. 2).W. C. Bryant 

Method 

To obtain the desired results in poem study in language work, children 
below the sixth grade should never be left to make the- initial study of a 
poem alone. It should be presented during the recitation period. When 
they attempt to study it out for themselves, children often make wrong 
groupings, misplace emphasis, or become confused by the inverted sentences 
— all of which leads to misinterpretation of thought. 

The period for morning exercises is a good time for the reciting of quota- 
tions, or for reviewing poems. No better material can be had for this 
period, once or twice a week, and the plan relieves the regular language 
period of this work. Insist that pupils always give a poem in the best 
manner of which they are capable. Slip-shod utterance and careless 
expression have absolutely no place in the schoolroom. 

Model 

ABOU BEN ADEEM 

Abou Ben Adhem (may his tribe increase!) 

Awoke one night from a deep dream of peace, 

And saw, within the moonlight in his room. 

Making it rich, and like a lily in bloom. 

An angel writing in a book of gold; 

Exceeding peace had made Ben Adhem bold. 

And to the presence in the room he said, 

"What writest thou?" — The vision raised its head, 

And with a look made of all sweet accord. 

Answered, "The names of those who love the Lord." 

"And is mine one?" said Abou. "Nay, not so," 

Replied the angel. Abou spoke more low, 

But cherrily still; and said, "I pray thee then. 

Write me as one that loves his fellow-men." 

The angle wrote and vanished. The next night 

It came again, with a great wakening light. 

And showed the names whom love of God had blessed, 

And lo! Ben Adhem's name led all the rest. 

— Leigh Hunt 



106 

Aims 

To acquaint the pupils with a beautiful well-known poem. 

To help them to appreciate the lesson taught. 

To help them to enjo}^ the beautiful language of this poem. 

Preparation 

You studied fables in the third and fourth grades, and, no doubt you 
could name a long list of them should I ask you. Who can tell me what a 
fable is? What was the fable about the fox and crow planned to teach? 
The ant and the grasshopper? 

The poem we are to study today partakes of the nature of an oriental 
fable. It is about Abou Ben Adhem, an Arabian, and two visions he had. 
(Write about Abou Ben Adhem on the board, mark it thus a'boo ben 
ad'hem and have children pronounce it several times.) 

Pupil's Aims 

To hear the stor}/ of Abou Ben Adhem. 
To discover what his two visions were. 



Presentation 



PupiVs part 



Awoke. 

Saw. 
An angel. 

Abou Ben Adhem awoke and saw 
an angel. 

Writing in a book of gold. 

Abou Ben Adhem awoke and saw 
an angel writing in a book of gold. 



It was an unusually beautiful 
moonlight night. The brightness 
was such that it made the room look 
rich like a lovely white lily. 



Teacher^s part 

Open your books to the poem. 
The poem begins with a sentence 
about Abou Ben Adhem. It is a 
long one, therefore we will first 
study it in parts. 

Find the first word that tells 
what Adhem did. 

Find another word that tells 
what he did. 

Saw is a word that needs another 
to follow; find what he saw. 

We will underscore those five 
or six important words. Read what 
you have underscored. 

What was the angel doing? 
Read those words with the words 
we underscored. 

There is something that tells 
us about the kind of night it was; 
let us look at those lines now — lines 
three and four. Read them silently, 
then tell me what kind of a night it 
was. 



107 



The enclosed words are sort of 
an afterthought. 

The poet hopes there will be more 
people like Abou. 

Not at all. 



He had been a peaceful man, 
therefore he had no one to fear. 

Abou. 

"What writest thou?" 

He said it slowly and calmly, 
"What writest thou?" 

"What writest thou?" 

It smiled. 

"The names of those who love the 
Lord." 

"And is mine one?" 
"Nay, not so." 



He felt disappointed. 

"I pray thee then, write me as one 
who loves his fellow-men." 

His neighbors; in fact, all man- 
kind. 



Because the angel ^had found that 
Abou loved his fellow-men. 



If a person loves his neighbors, 
he loves God. 



What is the meaning of the 
parenthesis in the first line? What 
do you think is meant by the 
enclosed words? 

Was Abou afraid of the angel? 

How do you account for the fact 
that Abou did not even seem 
startled to see the strange figure 
in his room? 

Who spoke first? 
What did he ask? 
How do you think he said it? 

Let us say it together the way 
he said it. 

How did the angel look when it 
answered? 

Read what it said. 

Read what Abou asked then? 

Read the angel's reply. 

In the next lines, we are told 
that Abou "spoke more low but 
cheerily still." Why did he speak 
more low? 

Read silently what he said when 
he spoke more low. 

What is the meaning of fellow- 
men? 

Read silently the four remaining 
lines. Why did Abou's name lead 
all the rest the second night? 

But did not the book of gold 
contain the names of those who 
loved the Lord? 



108 



Summary 



An angel writing names of people 
who love God in a book of gold. 

An angel showing Abou names of 
all people who love God. 

White. (The light) 
Gold. (The book) 

They help to make the pictures 
we see prettier. 



None that would have been so 
appropriate. 



Some of the words are musical in 
sound. 

Abou Ben Adhem 
deep dream of peace 
like a lily 
presence 
et al. 

(Children discuss this pro and 
con.) 



(Children listen.) 



We have seen that this poem 
contains two distinct pictures. What 
is the first? 

The second? 

What color words are there in 
this poem? 

In what way do they add to our 
enjoyment of the poem? 

Could the poet have used any 
more beautiful color combinations 
for this poem than white and gold? 

Besides the colors and pictures, 
what else is pleasing or beautiful 
about this poem? 

Let's make a list of the words 
and phrases we like the sound of. 



Do you think it correct 
classify this poem as a fable? 



to 



Close your books while I read 
the entire poem to you. 

(Most of the poem should be 
read at medium rate; the conversa- 
tion and latter parts more slowly; 
the tone should be soft but clear. 
The long e and soft c sounds as 
they are used add considerably 
to the beauty of this poem; give 
them their full value.) 

The teacher should then direct 
the reading of the poem by the 
pupils as a whole or in parts as she 
thinks best. 



If the teacher selects this as one of the poems to be memorized, the 
pupils should be able to do it without further assistance from her. 



109 

STORY REPRODUCTION 
Material 

Review occasionally one of the best stories of all the previous grades. 
Use the following list and as many more stories as is possible. 

Folk tales and legends 

Indian Legends of Michigan (See Preferred List) 

King Robert of Sicily (Longfellow's Tales of the Wayside Inn) 

Rip Van Winkle (Irving's Sketchbook) 

The Legend of Bregenz (A poem) 

Bible stories 

Ruth and Naomi (The Book of Ruth) *(33) 
Sampson's Riddle (Judges Chap. XIV) (32) 

True stories of modern times 
Stories about the following: 
Arnold Von Winkelreid (17) 
Joan of Arc (34) 
Florence Nightingale (34) 

George Rogers Clarke (American History Stories) 
Thomas Edison (30) 

Booker T. Washington (Up From Slavery by B. T. Washington) 
John Pershing (30) 

Hero or epic stories 

Robin Hood (17) (19) (23) 

Gulliver's Travels (From the book of this name ) (Selections may be 

found in readers) 
Sinbad the Sailor (5) (Arabian Night's Entertainments) 
Ali Baba, and the Forty Robbers Killed by One Slave (5) (Arabian 

Night's Entertainments) 
Water Babies 

Method 

If a different story is assigned each child to reproduce, the class is a more 
interested therefore a more helpful audience than is possible when all 
have prepared the same story. 

Every repetition of a story should be for the definite purpose of making 
the child's spoken language a degree better. One week the teacher may 
work for the omission of unnecessary words, another week for the elimina- 
tion of colloquialisms and other poor English, the third week for better 
repetition of a conversation between characters, etc. 

Free dramatization should be used only occasionally in the intermediate 
grades. In connection with the written work in this grade there has been 
planned some written dramatization of stories. 

In these intermediate grades it is important that the children should 
be told several hero stories, for at these ages all boys and most girls are 
hero worshipers. They enjoy stories of bravery and daring in war and in 
adventure. They will have them whether the teacher so wills or not. 



* The numbers refer to Sources of Stories, page 135. 



110 

The kind that will be obtainable outside of the school library will often be 
of the Alger, Henty, or Jessie James class. Knowing the hunger that boys 
have for these tales of mighty adventure, the teacher must have in her 
repertoire plenty of classic hero stories that she can tell or read frequently. 
If she handles the matter skillfully she can lead the children to view with 
disgust the exaggerations and the improbabilities of the cheap story. It 
is a fine opportunity to show them the difference between real literature 
and trash. 

Model 

See Models in preceding grades. 



PICTURE STUDY 

Material 

Chose five pictures from the list below for the picture work this year. 

The Gleaners — Millet 

The Horse Fair — Bonheur 

Pilgrims Going to Church — Boughton 

Hailing the Ferryman — Knight 

The Child Hande' — Dicksee 

St. Gauden's Lincoln 

The Mill— Ruysdael 

Spring — Mauve 

Method 

See Method in preceding grades. 

The teacher must not lose sight of the fact that picture study as presented 
in this bulletin is not an end in itself but rather one means for getting good 
expression of the English language from the pupils. State the questions 
as far as possible so that statements will have to be given in answer. 
Encourage discussion among the pupils themselves. 

More attention should be given to the painter of each picture in these 
intermediate grades. The children should be taught to think of the artist, 
in connection with his pictures. When Millet's The Gleaners is studied 
this year, call attention to the other pictures of this artist that have been 
studied in the preceding grades. The pupils will generalize that Millet 
painted pictures of the country showing people at work. Likewise, with 
slight direction from the teacher they will come to the conclusion that 
Bonheur and Landseer painted animal pictures, while Raphael gave to the 
world some of our most beautiful pictures of Madonnas and Saints. This 
and all other information that can be made to come in incidentally now will 
make a splendid foundation for picture study that may come later in the 
grades or high school. 

Models 
See Model under Picture Study In other grades. 



Ill 

DAILY LANGUAGE DRILL 

Material 

Do not forget that the lists of errors in this bulletin are merely suggestive. 
Work on the errors made by your pupils whether they appear here or not. 
Listen for the mistakes made in the playground conversation. The 
ch Idren are most natural there. 

L Verb errors 

Don't for doesn't 

Learned for taught 
Wrong form of the verb in sentences beginning with there; ex. There 
was five eggs in the nest for There were five eggs in the nest 

2. Pronoun errors 

It was me for It was I 

Was it her (or him) for Was it she (or he) 

It was them for It was they 

3. Faulty pronunciation 

Has (the c sound of s) for hag 

Haf for have 

They was for there was 
I c'n for I can 

4. Colloquialisms 

He is the boy what broke the window for He is the boy that 

broke the window 
She told on him for She told what he did (or said) 

I got it off him for I got it from him 

Where shall I take it to for Where shall I take it 

The bread did not raise well for The bread did not rise well 
Bad sick for sick or very sick 

Method 

The need of a system in the work of improving oral English has long been 
felt. Without doubt the best one found yet is the keeping of a card record. 
A card is made out for each child upon his entrance tof school. As the 
teacher notes his language weakness she writes them upon the card. As 
they are eliminated she makes note of it. As the child advances from grade 
to grade the card is sent with him. The best feature of this system is that 
with a glance at the card the teacher is made familiar with the child's 
English record up to date. Knowing that, she knows what needs emphasis 
the present year. The weakness of the system is in the great amount of 
time that it would require of teachers who already have too much to do. 
Teachers having more than twenty pupils would no doubt find it an impos- 
sibility to keep such a record of each pupil. A certain rural teacher having 
two bright eighth grade girls among her sixteen pupils placed the keeping 
of the English cards entirely into their hands. The girls were delighted 



112 

with the responsibility and in training themselves to hear the errors of the 
other children they became conscious of their own which they corrected as 
hastily as possible. One of the girls did considerable work with individual 
pupils in correcting their errors although the teacher did not ask for it. 
By glancing at the cards that the girls kept, she could see what errors 
needed rectifying and she planned the daily language drill accordingly. 

Model 

IT WAS NOT I AND IT WAS I instead of IT WAS ME 
AND IT WASN'T ME 

A child blindfolded stands with his back to the class. He holds one of 
his hands back of him. The children back of him exchange seats, and then 
one steals softly forward and places something in his open hand. Ques- 
tions and answers follow: 



Leader. 


Was it you. A? 


A. 


No, it was not L 


Leader. 


Was it you, B? 


B. 


No, it was not L 


Leader. 


Was it you, C? 


C. 


Yes, it was L 




Written Work 




COPYING FROM MODEL 




Material 



Any sentence, paragraph, or stanza that reviews or illustrates capitaliza- 
tion or marks of punctuation with which the children are expected to be 
familiar at the end of the year. The new punctuation for this year is that 
connected with the direct divided quotation and an explanatory word or 
group of words. 

Method 

If the ordinary direct quotation was taught thoroughly in the fourth 
grade and then reviewed at the beginning of this year, there will be no 
difficulty in developing the direct divided quotation. Explain the reason 
for the extra punctuation. 

The punctuation necessary to separate an explanatory word or group 
of words from the rest of the sentence can also be explained to children 
as they have now reached the stage where reason helps the memory. 

It will be noticed that the indirect quotation has not been mentioned in 
this bulletin. It has been neglected purposely because it is thought if 
nothing is said about it children will write it as they would any statement 
while talking about it causes them to confuse it with the direct quotation. 

All written work with the exception of the dictation exercises should be 
done in ink, and the paper used by the members of the class should be 
uniform in size. 



113 

Models 
Suitable material may be found in any language text or reader. 

DICTATION EXPERCISES 
Material 

Any material that is suitable for applying and testing results of pre- 
ceding lessons on the technique of written work. 

Method 
See Method as outlined for preceding grades. 

Models 
See Models for preceding grades. 

REPRODUCTION OF STORIES IN DRAMA FORM 
See outline for this work for the fourth grade. 

ORIGINAL COMPOSITION 

LETTER-WRITING 

Material 

Friendship letters 

Invitations 

Replies to invitations 

Method 

One recitation out of the five, and three of the five study periods are 
sufficient to give to written work in this grade. As suggested in the fourth 
grade letter-writing should form a large proportion of the written work — 
perhaps one half. As many of the letters as possible should actually be 
sent to the children's friends or relatives because children take much more 
pleasure in the work when they have an audience. They may also write 
to the teacher, to some one in the class, or to some one in another grade. 

Most of the letters written in this grade doubtless will be based on more 
than one topic, hence the children must be made acquainted with what a 
paragraph is. Without speaking of it technically, farther than calling 
it a paragraph, show them by example that a paragraph must possess 
unity and coherence — that is, in the child's vocabulary each paragraph 
must be about one thing and the sentences must hang together. 

It is a splendid plan to make small beginnings in this grade toward the 
formation of the habit of thinking over and outlining that which is to be 
written. The pupils may be given neat slips of paper on which to write 
the topics of each paragraph like this: 



114 

Letter to Grandpa 

1st paragraph — Thank him for Jip . * 

2nd paragraph — Going fishing 

3rd paragraph — Patrons' day at school 

Letter to Kate 

1st paragraph — My birthday party 

2nd paragraph — Our garment-making club 

The teacher should then insist that the slips be handed in with the letter 
in order that she may know how closely the pupils follow their topic out- 
line. This is indeed a very small beginning toward making an outline but 
experience has proved that it is a good one. 

The writing of invitations always appeals to children. A real need for 
writing them should be made. The class may plan to entertain another 
class, their mothers, or half their number may entertain the other half. 
Necessity for answering invitations should also be created. If some of the 
class invite the rest to some affair, the latter, of course, must reply to the 
invitation or if the teacher invites all of them to join her in a walk after 
school or to a "weenie" roast then all must reply. 



Models 
A LETTER OF THREE PARAGRAPHS 



1st paragraph — My new apron 
2nd paragraph — Sewing in school 
3rd paragraph — Our sewing exhibit 



May 3, 1918. 
Dear Bab, 

I have just finished making a kimono apron. It 
is the first thing I ever made. The first big thing I mean. 
It is pink checked gingham trimmed in white rickrack. 

I think sewing is lots of fun. I never had it in 
school before I came here. 

We are going to have a good time next Monday. 
We exhibit our sewing that day and we are going to serve 
lemonade and cookies to everybody who comes. 

Your friend, 

Bess. 



115 

INVITATIONS 

October 8, 1918. 

Mrs. White, 

We shall be pleased to have you come to our patriotic 
program Friday afternoon at two-thirty o'clock. 

The Fifth Grade 



The A class of the fifth grade will take a bird trip 
Thursday, starting at three o'clock. They will be pleased to 
have the sixth grade join them. 

Lincoln School, 

June the second. 



REPLY 



The B class of the fifth grade accepts with pleasure 
the invitation of the A class to join them in a bird trip Thurs- 
day. 

Lincoln School, 

June the third. 



STORY-WRITING 

Material 
Same as listed for original story-telling. 

Method 

Pupils are helped to arrange their sentences more logically by occasion- 
ally putting them on paper. It also gives a teacher opportunity to show 
the pupils how a story may be improved by putting the third sentence 
second, the last one first, or vice versa. 

Keep the stories short. One paragraph from six to ten sentences long, 
or two shorter paragraphs are sufficient. The title has much to do with the 
length of the story. Broad indefinite titles call for more than any pupil 
can handle well. For instance, the subject ''Our Picnic" will under no 
circumstances be treated as well as any of these definite subjects which all 
relate to the picnic: 



116 

How Robert Caught Eight Fish 
What Happened to our Lunch Baskets 
How I Learned to Row 
When Bess Fell into the River 
After Water Lilies 

Always if possible prompt the work with incentives such as these: 
To read at a public program; to put in my original story book; to send to 
the county exhibit; to please mother. 



Models 

A PUNISHMENT I REMEMBER 

When I was little I thought mother and father liked my sister Carrie 
better than they did me. She always kept her dress so clean and I didn't. 
One day when she was four and I was six we went to my aunt's. Mother 
told us to come home clean. I spilled ice cream on Carrie's dress on 
purpose. Then I told her I would break her doll if she told. I didn't 
know that aunt heard me. She telephoned mother and when I got home 
father scolded me. I had to go to bed without any supper too. 

DESCRIPTION 

Material 
Same as for oral work. 

Method 

Short written descriptions may be asked for two or three times during 
the year. They must follow oral descriptions. These rules are good ones 
to follow when describing something: 

1. Have in your mind a clear picture of the thing you are describing. 

2. Use words and expressions that give exactly the picture you wish 

your audience to have. 
Study good literary models as preparation for original descriptions. 

Models 

THE KING OF THE GOLDEN RIVER 

It was the most extraordinary-looking little gentleman. 
He had a very large nose, slightly brass-colored; very round 
and very red cheeks; merry eyes, long hair, and mustaches 
that curled twice round like corkscrews on each side of his 
mouth. He was four feet six inches high, and wore a pointed 
cap as long as himself. It was decorated with a black feather 
about three feet long. Around his body was folded an enor- 
mous black, glossy-looking cloak much too long for him. 

— John Ruskin 



117 

EXPLANATION 

See Oral Work 



KEEPING A CLASS DIARY OR JOURNAL 

Material 

National and world affairs in which every one is interested. 

Interesting and important happenings in school or in the community. 

Opinions, reactions, and feelings of the class on various subjects. 

Method 

The keeping of a dairy by a class has been found to be enjoyable and 
profitable composition work for fourth and fifth grades. Usually when a 
class diary is kept no attempt is made to write in it at stated intervals but 
only when such topics as stated under Material warrant it. The language 
recitation period or a portion of it is spent in writing unitedly a report of 
the incident. It is usually written sentence by sentence on the board. 
Then it is revised, and some one is appointed to copy it into the class book. 



Model 

EXTRACTS FROM A CLASS DIARY 

March 29 

Fourteen young men left this county yesterday to serve in Uncle Sam's 
army. They met at , our county seat, at one o'clock yester- 
day. A large crowd of people from all parts of the county gathered there 
to do them honor. A fine program of music and speeches was given in the 
park. At five o'clock a dinner was served them by the ladies of the Red 
Cross in the G. A. R. hall. In the evening the young people gave a party 
for them in the pavilion. 

April 9 

We took our first bird trip yesterday afternoon. We walked across the 
fields to the woods south of here. On the way we saw robins and meadow 
larks. We tried to imitate their calls but no one could very well except 
Harry and Will. In the woods we saw little brown creepers, chewinks, 
and a red-headed woodpecker. We liked the woodpecker best of all 
because he was so busy and so pretty. 



VERSE-WRITING 

Since poetry appeals so strongly to children, they should be given an 
opportunity at least once a year of expressing their feelings through this 
means. Emphasize the fact that it is the child's feelings on or for a subject 
that is desired rather than a jingle of words. Read Verse-Writing in 
Leiper's Language Work in Elementary Schools. 



SIXTH GRADE 

WHAT TO DO 

1. Create an atmosphere conducive to free natural expression and 
easy bearing in all the recitation work. 

2. Endeavor to keep the language work from being something to be 
dreaded by the pupils. 

3. Always be sure the pupils have something to say or write before 
you ask them to do so. Use a greater proportion of personal experience 
than material gained from reading for the former is much more vital sub- 
ject matter. 

4. Help the pupils to stick to the point when talking or writing. 

5. Clinch thoroughly all the marks of punctuation that have been taught. 
If all have been presented according to this bulletin it will not be necessary 
to acquaint the children with any new ones in this grade. 

6. Teach the paragraph as simply as possible in connection with the 
written work. 

7. Make the daily language drill spirited and interesting. 

MATERIAL AND METHOD 
Oral Work 

ORIGINAL COMPOSITION 

ORIGINAL STORIES 

Personal experiences, nature myths, hero and adventure stories. 
Longer, stated mxore logically and expressed better than those pre- 
viously given. 

DESCRIPTION 

Apt words; concise statements expressed in logical order. 

EXPLANATION 

The work of the preceding grade enlarged upon. Some subjects 
that -demand more investigation may be assigned. 

REPORTS ON CURRENT EVENTS AND BOOK REVIEWS 

Pupils may report on individual topics previously assigned this year. 

ARGUMENT 

Few statements strictly to the point. 

POEM STUDY 

Previous work in poem memorization reviewed. Not less than 
eight poems or good prose selections studied and not less than five 
of them memorized; also several quotations. 



119 

STORY REPRODUCTION 

At least six good stories reproduced during the year. 

PICTURE STUDY 

Five more pictures studied. 

LANGUAGE DRILL 

Conducted daily. Based on any errors common to this grade. 

Written Work 

COPYING FROM MODEL 

Used only occasionally this year — only when there is question on the 
pupil's part about the punctuation or form of a certain kind of sen- 
tence, paragraph, or stanza. 

DICTATION EXERCISES 

Given at least twice a week to test pupils in spelling, punctuation, 
capitalization, and other technicalities. 

REPRODUCING STORIES IN DRAMA FORM 

Short stories reproduced by individual pupils in "play" form. 

ORIGINAL COMPOSITION 

LETTER-WRITING 

This form of written composition should compose more than half 
of the written work of the year for it includes description, narration, 
and frequently explanation. 

ORIGINAL STORY-WRITING 

Short stories may be asked for two or three times during the year. 

DESCRIPTION 

This also not to be used more than three or four times during the 
year and the descriptions kept short — never more than six to eight 
sentences in length. 

EXPLANATION 

One or two explanations written during the year are sufficient. 

VERSE-WRITING 

No doubt best to give all an opportunity to express their thoughts in 
verse. Encourage any that seem to have talent. 



120 

Oral Work 
ORIGINAL COMPOSITION 

Material 

ORIGINAL STORIES 

The following kinds of material are planned for thi year' work in story 
composition : 

Personal Experiences 

The First Coast of the Winter 

A Hallowe'en Scare 

Camping 

If I Were Teacher 

What Made the Teacher Laugh 

A Marshmallow Roast 

A Birthday Party 

When My Ship Comes In 

What Frightened Me 

When Mother Goes Away 

Stories Based on Pictures Cut from Magazines 
Nature Myths 

Why the Crow is Black 

Why Owls Hoot at Night . 

Why the Giraffe has a Long Neck 

Why the Elephant is Afraid of a Mouse 

Why Cats are Afraid of Water 

Why the Squirrel has a Bushy Tail 

How the Bluejay Got his Crest 

Where the Firefly Got his Light 

Why Roses Have Thorns 

Why Daffodils are Yellow 

Why Dandelions Turn White 

Why the Honeysuckle Hangs Downward 

Imaginative Hero Stories and Adventures 
Robin Hood the Second 

The Quest of Sir Landow the Brave Hearted 
Tyrus — the Boy King 
Why Quentin Was Knighted 
A Trip in an Airplane . 
A Midnight Adventure 
In a Canoe on Lake Michigan 
With the Balloon Man on Circus Day 
A Secret Chest 
Bill's Stolen Ride in a Freight Car 

Method 

Read carefully Method in preceding grades. 

The telling of original nature myths offers a splendid opportunity for 
constructive, imaginative composition work. This grade is the proper 
place to introduce it. The plan to follow is similar to that for teaching 
the children how to tell fables — by imitation. The animal myths are 



121 

undoubtedly the easiest to imitate. Read or tell and discuss with the chil- 
dren three or four of the following list of animal myths: 

(1) Why the Bear is Stumpy-tailed — from Mrs. Thorne-Thomsen's 
"East O' the Sun and West O' the Moon." 

(2) How the Robin's Breast became Red — Edna Lyman's "Story 
Telling" or Cooke's "Nature Myths and Stories." 

(3) The Woodpecker — from Edna Lyman's "Story Telling." 

(4) How the Leopard Got his Spots — from Kipling's "Just-So Stories." 

(5) How the Camel Got his Hump — from Kipling's "Just-So Stories." 

(6) The Elephant's Child — Kipling's "Just-So Stories." 

(7) How the Chipmunk got his Stripes (written by school children) — 
Aldine's Second Language Book. 

After a thorough review of three or four of the above the children will be 
ready to tell their own myths. Better results will be obtained in all the 
future myth work, if the class works out at least one myth together. This 
plan gives a teacher an opportunity to help the pupils on many minor 
technical points. For instance, she may advise them how to vary their 
beginning sentence. For myths these are good : In the days of long ago ; 
Once upon a time ; Long before you and I lived upon this earth ; or, When 
the world was new. Many teachers do not realize how much these small 
matters trouble the children. A small amount of time in anticipating the 
hard places will often save hours spent in correcting a fault. 

Previous to the telling of original myths about flowers, review some of 
these : 

(1) Goldenrod and Asters — from Cooke's "Nature Myths." 

(2) Clytie— from Cooke's "Nature Myths." 

(3) Why the Narcissus Grows Near the Water. 

(4) The Legend of the Arbutus — from Bailey and Lewis' "For the Chil- 
dren's Hour." 

(5) The Legend of the Dandelion — from Bailey and Lewis' "For the 
Children's Hour." 

Through the study and reproduction of classic myths in preceding grades 
the names of many of the gods and goddesses should be quite familiar 
to the children of the sixth grade. They will better appreciate literary 
allusions to these mythical beings if they are encouraged to use them as 
characters in their original myths. These are suggested as the ones to use; 

Jupiter, King of the Heavens, or the All-Father 

Apollo, God of the Sun 

Diana, Goddess of the Moon and Hunt 

Aurora, Goddess of the Dawn 

Minerva, Goddess of Wisdom 

Pluto, God of the Underworld 

Ceres, Goddess of Agriculture 

Flora, Goddess of Flowers 



122 

The fact that fifth and sixth grade pupils Hke stories of heroes and 
adventure was discussed in Method under Story Reproduction. Knowing 
the dehght that the boys take in this kind of story, some successful teachers 
of composition in the fifth, sixth, and seventh grades have given a few 
periods during the year to original work along this line. Subjects for such 
work are suggested under Material. 

Model 
See Models in previous grades. 

DESCRIPTION 

Material 

Three lessons, including written descriptions should be given each month. 
There should be at least two oral lessons to one written work. Written 
work should always be preceeded by a lesson in oral description. To give 
the three lessons consecutively each month will bring better results than to 
have one at a time. The descriptions should be from six to eight or ten 
sentences in length. 

Suggestive topics for description 

A poppy — brilliant, delicate, fragile, graceful, the Orient. 

A Christmas tree — shining, decorated, tinsel, candles, gifts, festoons. 

An iceberg — huge, cold, glistening, blue, floats, submerged. 

Water — transparent, colorless, clear, mobile, tasteless, odorless. 

A chrysanthemum, oil, a clover field, a drum, a book, a clock, a pumpkin; 
the sound of sawing wood, of unloading coal, of a bell, of wagon 
wheels; the taste of cheese, olive oil, vinegar; the smell of apple 
blossoms, an orange, mustard; the touch of a flower, mud, marble, 
fur, linen. 

Method 

In order to have descriptions of the required length, the pupils of this 
grade must know definitely several facts about the thing to be described. 
Teach them that there are three ways to get material for their descrip- 
tions — by observing or examining the thing itself, or a picture of it ; by asking 
questions of those who know; by reading. 

Review and clinch thoroughly the following points that are always to 
be observed in making a description: 

Choose apt words. 

Begin a description with one or two general statements. 

Proceed from the whole to the parts of the thing. 

Besides the continuous practice of the above named points, the pupils 
of this grade should begin to use comparisons (this makes a good founda- 
tion for the simple figures of speech which should be taught in the seventh 
and eighth grades). Read lines or paragraphs from stories and poems to 
show the children how the judicious use of comparisons help to vivify the 
description, and also makes one's language interesting. For instance, 



123 

John Ruskin when describing the King of the Golden River said, "His 
mustaches curl twice around like corkscrews on each side of his mouth." 
How much more forceful is this statement than "His mustaches curl on 
each side of his mouth." Instead of saying, "Her eyes are still bright," 
Hans Christian Andersen said in a description of a grandmother, "Her 
eyes are still as bright as stars and even more beautiful." Edward Eggles- 
ton in describing a boy said he had "legs that looked like reeds." 

It is a good plan to have a lesson on comparisons early in September. 
After the idea is developed have the children complete the following, making 
original comparisons as far as possible: 



Soft as 


Brave as 


Young as 


Spry as 


Bright as 


Strong as 


Slow as 


Happy as 



After this, a lesson or two could profitably be spent in discovering compari- 
sons in selections in their reading books, or from poems previously studied 
in language. With this much attention spent on the subject, the children 
should be able to use comparisons in their description with comparative 
ease. Do not forget that by over use, comparisons lose their force. One 
in a description of one paragraph is usually sufficient. Common, meaning- 
less ones such as "bright as a dollar," "clean as a whistle" are to be avoided. 

Models 

(Notice that the first sentence in the following Models is a general one, 
and the description preceeds therefrom to the parts.) 

"It was a large room with low ceiling, quaintly papered in very old 
creamy paper scattered with delicately cut green leaves. There were four 
large windows to let in light and air, with fresh white curtains hanging over 
the deep green shades. The floor was carpeted with a freshly washed rag 
carpet stretched over straw, and the bed was invitingly clean and looked 
comfortable. There was a washstand with bowl and pitcher, soap and 
towels, a small table with a lamp, a straight-backed chair, and a rocking 
chair." 

— Gene Stratton Porter 
In A Daughter of the Land 

"Picture to yourselves, my dear children, a handsome old-fashioned room. 
There is a large, open cupboard at one end, in which is displayed a magnificent 
gold cup, with some other splendid articles of gold and silver plate. In 
another part of the room, opposite to a tall looking-glass, stands Grand- 
father's chair, newly polished, and adorned with a gorgeous cushion of 
crimson velvet tufted with gold. 

In the chair sits a man of strong and sturdy frame, whose face has been 
roughened by northern tempests and blackened by the burning sun of the 
West Indies. His coat has a wide embroidery of golden foliage, and his 
waistcoat likewise is all flowered over with gold. His red, rough hands, 
which have done many a good day's work with the hammer and the adz, 
are half covered by the delicate lace ruffles 



124 

at his wrists. On a table lies his silver-hilted sword, and in a corner of 
the room stands his gold-headed cane, made of a beautifully polished West 
India wood." 

— Nathaniel Hawthorne 

In The Sunken Treasure. 

EXPLANATION 

Material 

The following topics are suggestive of what should be given for this year's 
work in explanation: 

How to Lay the Table for Supper 
How to Spray Fruit Trees 
How to Sew on a Button 
How to Play Run Sheep Run 
How to Play Prison Goal 
Plow I Pack My School Lunch 
How We Made Maple Syrup 

Method 

An orderly statement of the successive steps in a game or process must 
be insisted upon. In the long explanations of this grade this is often more 
necessary than it was in previous grades. Be sure the children are wholly- 
familiar with the process they are expected to explain. 

Model 

HOW I LAY THE TABLE FOR SUPPER 

When I get home from school, I put the table cloth on the table. I 
put a knife, a fork, and a spoon at each plate. I place the fork at the left 
side and the knife and spoon at the right. If we are to have soup, I put 
a large spoon beside the small one. I put the plates at father's place. 
I put on the cold food such as the bread and the butter. When mother 
begins to put the hot food on the table, I fill the glasses with water. 

POEM STUDY 
Material 

Continue to review previously learned poems, prose selections, and 
quotations. The following are appropriate for this grade. Have one 
memorized . each month. 

Poems to be studied 

The Day is Done *(12-Bk. 2) Longfellow poems H. W. Longfellow 

The House by the Side of the Road (2) Sam W. Foss 

Nobility (2) Alice Gary 

Down to Sleep (1) Helen H. Jackson 

The Gorn Song (9-Bk. ) (14) (15) J. G. Whittier 



The numbers refer to Sources of Poems, page 135. 



125 

The Pumpkin (2) J. G. Whittier 

The Landing of the Pilgrims (2) Felicia Hemans 

Ring Out, Wild Bells (3) A. Tennyson 

The White Footed Deer (9-Bk. 6) (12-Bk. 2)..W. C. Bryant 
Paul Revere's Ride (3) H. W. Longfellow- 
Excelsior (9-Bk. 5) (12-Bk. 2) H. W. Longfellow 

Gradatim (15) J. G. Holland 

Tubal Cain (9-Bk. 5) Chas. Mackay 

O Captain! My Captain (2) . Walt Whitman 

Charge of the Light Brigade (9-Bk. 7) 

(12-Bk. 2) (14) (15) A. Tennyson 

The Skeleton in Armor (12-Bk. 2) Longfellow 

Poems H. W. Longfellow 

The Daffodils (1-7 th gd.) Wm. Wordsworth 

Rain in Summer (9-Bk. 4) (13) (14) H. W. Longfellow 

The Cloud (1) Percy B. Shelby 

Prose selections 

The Nineteenth Psalm The Bible 

The Foot Path to Peace (2) Henry Van Dyke . 

Poems to be read to the pupils 

Columbus (l-7th gd.) Joaquin Miller 

King Robert of Sicily (Tales of the Wayside 

Inn) H. W. Longfellow 

The Old Clock on the Stairs (Longfellow Poems) 

(12-Bk. 2) H. W. Longfellow 

Sheridan's Ride (3) T. B. Read 

Paul Revere's Ride (3) H. W. Longfellow 

Independence Hall (3) Unknown 

Method 

If proper attention has been given to the children's voices from the 
first grade up, "the reading tone" will not be heard here. If it is in some 
instances, work to get rid of it. A well -modulated pleasing voice, both in 
speaking and reading, is to be desired quite as much as an enlarged vocabu- 
lary or a well-developed imagination. 

Model 
See Fifth Grade Model under Poem Study. 



STORY REPRODUCTION 

Material 

Bible stories 

Queen Esther and the Feast of Purim (Book of Esther) (32) (33) 
Belshazzar's Feast (Daniel Chap. V) (32) 
Daniel in the Lion's Den (Daniel Chap. VI) (32) 



126 

True Stories 

How the Star Spangled Banner Came to be Written 
Stories concerning 

Clara Barton (30) 

Frances Willard (30) 

Luther Burbank (30) 

Grace DarHng (17) 

Helen Keller (30) 

Robert E. Peary (30) . 

Hero or epic stories 

King Arthur Stories (19) (23) (See Preferred List) 
Beowulf (31) (See Preferred List) 
Roland (19) (23) 
Childe Horn (31) 

Newspaper and Magazine Jokes- 

Method 

Use the stories prepared for retelling or dramatization for the morning 
exercise period, and for Friday afternoon and special day programs. 

Teachers must not forget that the average person has many times as 
many opportunities to express himself orally as he does in writing. There- 
fore the emphasis should be placed on oral language. When the teacher is 
tempted to ask for a written reproduction of a story she should consider the 
matter a second time. 

In this grade there are often boys and girls whose arms and legs begin 
to grow more than do the average child's and they feel awkward and are 
easily embarrassed. They must not be allowed to slouch down either in 
sitting or standing. The teacher with a little thought may be able to devise 
some scheme to make the standing in oral recitation work, such as story 
reproduction, less awkward though none the less correct. 

The children should be constantly urged to reproduce their stories, in 
fact, do all their reciting in the same tone of voice that they use at recess 
when talking to their friends. 

Model 
See Models for the first four grades. 

PICTURE STUDY 

Material 

Study at least five pictures in this grade. Toward the end of the year 
review all thirty that should be known. 

End of Day — Adan 
Autumn — Mauve 
The Angelus — Millet 
Christmas Chimes — Blashfield 
Sir Galahad — Watts 
Princes in the Tower — Millais 
Song of the Lark — Breton 
Aurora — Guido Reni 
Dance of the Nymphs — Corot 



127 

Method 

If the pupils are fortunate enough to have access to some of the books 
on pictures that are suggested in this bulletin, do not hesitate to have them 
occasionally study a picture or an artist individually, and give a report of 
the same to the other members of the class. To have the pupils prepare 
questions for picture study is also a fine exercise in English. 

Model 
See Models under Picture Study in preceding grades. 



DAILY LANGUAGE DRILL 
Material 
1. Verb errors 

Nobody don't come to see us for Nobody comes to see us 



I don't see nothing 

2. Pronoun errors 

He is as tall as me 
Mary is heavier than him 

Every pupil did their duty 



for I don't see anything, or, I see 
nothing 

for He is as tall as I (am tall) 
for Mary is heavier than he (is 

heavy) 
for Every pupil did his (or her) 
duty 



3. Faulty pronunciations 

I could of gone for 

I must of been late for 
Useto for used to 

Wun't for won't 
Sujest for suggest 
A thinkin o' goin' for 
I was goin' ta for 

Caow for cow 

Haow for how 

Naow for now 

Doncha for don't you 

4. Colloquialisms 

Put it up upon to the table 
I can't go without father 

lets me 
She acted like she was 

afraid 



I could have gone 
I must have been late 



thinking of going 
I was going to 



for Put it upon the table 

for I can't go unless father lets me 

for She acted as though she were 
afraid 



Method 

This will be the last year of school for some pupils. The teacher should 
"pull up the drawstrings" of all previous work in the daily language drills. 
Clinch well all that has been taught them in the five previous years. Better 



128 

to do that than to introduce new work this year if both cannot be done well. 
Every child has some one ambition. Whatever it may be, in nine cases 
out of ten, slovenliness and crudity of speech will be a handicap in attaining 
to the highest in it. Help the sixth grade boys and girls to realize this. 
Give specific examples illustrating this fact. 

Model 
See Models under Daily Language drill in preceding grades. 



Written Work 
COPYING FROM MODEL 
Material 

Any sentence, stanza, paragraph, or group of stanzas or paragraphs that 
gives the pupil necessary review or drill on capitalization, punctuation, 
and indentation. 

Method 

The outline for all previous grades should be carefully read and if one 
point has been neglected, this is the time to work on it. Discover and 
strengthen all the weak spots in the technique of written composition. 

Models 
Suitable material may be found in any language text or reader. 



DICTATION EXERCISES 

Material 

Any material that is suitable for applying and testing results of preced- 
ing lessons on the technique of written work. 

Method 
See Method as outlined in this bulletin for the first four grades. 

Models 
See Models for the first four grades. 



REPRODUCTION OF STORIES IN DRAMA FORM 

Material 

Any literary or history story not too long with which the children are 
familiar. 



129 

Method 

The children who have had experience in rewriting stories in drama form 
as a member of a united class may be asked once or twice during the year 
to do some of this work individually. There are some in every class who 
delight in writing plays and, of course, there are others with less imagina- 
tion who dislike it more or less. Studying a model such as may be found 
in a good dramatic reader is the best preparation for this work. 



Model 
WILLIAM TELL 

(One scene from the story of William Tell as written in drama form by a 
fifth grade girl in a county normal training school.) 

Scene I 

People — Gesler and attendants, villagers, and William Tell. 

Place — Village street. 

Properties — Space for street; pole on which there is hung a hat. 

Villagers stroll up and down the street bowing to the hat on the pc \ 
Gesler and his attendants enter and pause near the pole. ^ 
Gesler — I wish to remain here a short time to see how well my command 

is being obeyed. 
First Attendant— No one would disobey you, my Lord. 
Gesler — I am not so sure. I fear I am not greatly loved in this village. 
Second Attendant — Look, my Lord! see how respectfully that old man 

bows. 
Third Attendant — Here comes a party of four. Yes, they are all bowing. 
Gesler — Fine! But stay, there comes a man with haughty bearing. I do 

not like his eye. 
(The stranger, William Tell, passes the hat without glancing at it.) 
Villager — -Heigh there, my man! You better bow to the King's hat. 
William Tell — Indeed, I'll do no such a thing. 

(He passes on as he speaks and when he has finished he is directly in front 
of Gesler.) 
Gesler — What is this you say, you vagabond? Turn about and pay your 

respects to Gesler's hat. 
William Tell — I refuse. 
Gesler (angrily, to his attendant) — Chain this man and throw him into 

prison. I'll not brook such impudence. (Two attendants step on 

either side of Tell and tie his hands behind him with chains. They 

hurry him away to prison. Gesler and the three attendants walk 

away in opposite direction.) 

(Curtain) 



130 
ORIGINAL COMPOSITION 

LETTER-WRITING 

Material 

Friendship letters of two to five paragraphs 

Invitations and replies 

Simple business letters 

Letter of sympathy or congratulation 

Method 

Strengthen the paragraph idea. Continue the practice of having pupils 
make, previous to the writing of the letter, a list of topics to be discussed 
in the letter. 

Since the sixth grade is often the last year of school for some of the 
pupils, some time should be given to the writing of business letters. Busi- 
ness letters are written for the purpose of getting or giving information. 
No word should be wasted but the matter stated as clearly and briefly 
as possible. Emphasize the fact that they must be neat and correct in 
every detail. The form does not differ from that of the friendship letter 
except there is an introduction before the greeting and the greeting is more 
formal in a business letter. If possible, have some business letters written 
that can actually be sent. 

Models 

R. F. D. No. 1, 

Brown City, Michigan, 
October 2, 1917. 
Beckley-Cardy Company, 
Chicago, Illinois. 

My dear Sirs: 

Will you kindly send me your latest catalog of supplies 
for the schoolroom. Thank you. 

Yours very truly, 

Jack Robinson. 



BECKLEY-CARDY COMPANY 

312 West Randolph Street 

Chicago, Illinois 



131 

Pine Grove, Michigan, 
May 1, 1918. 

Mr. C. M. Tompkins, 
Lanson, Michigan. 

Dear Mr. Tompkins: 

Mr. Davey told me last evening that you want a boy to 
help you with your chores and light farm work this summer. 
I wish to apply for the place. I am twelve years old. I am five 
feet four inches in height, and I weigh 130 pounds. I like farm 
animals and I think I should like to work with them. 

Yours very truly, 

Harry Jones. 



STORY-WRITING 

Material 
Same as that listed for original story-telling. 

Method 

All the different forms of composition should occasionally be put into 
writing in these intermediate grades to develop exactness of statement 
and correct phraseology. Written work as stated previously should 
always be preceded by considerable oral work. Children can produce 
a better written composition when the material is familiar to them and 
they have only the form to think of than they can when both material and 
form demand considerable thought. 

It is not necessary that the stories written in this grade be of greater 
length than those required for the fifth grade, but they should be neater, 
more nearly correct in punctuation and capitalization, and better expressed. 

Models 
See previous grade for models. 



DESCRIPTION 

See oral work 

EXPLANATION 

See oral work 

KEEPING INDIVIDUAL DIARIES 

Material 

The material for personal diaries should consist of an account of any 
event, experience, opinion, or feeling that the child desires to express. 



132 

Method 

To enjoy keeping a diary, the child must feel free to chose his material 
and free in his treatment of it. Undoubtedly his judgment in selecting 
material may be strengthened by an occasional bit of advice from the 
teacher but she must avoid destroying the individuality that is shown in 
the work. Teachers who have had experience in having their pupils keep 
a diary or journal agree that it is one of the best known means for getting 
children to express themselves freely in written composition. It also gives 
them practice in writing all forms of composition — stories, description, 
explanation, and argument (in the expression of their own opinions). Some 
teachers use the diary as a medium for teaching children to express their 
thoughts as briefly as* possible. Others, granting that the children need 
such practice, feel that the chief purpose of the diary is to develop ease and 
good style in writing and this end would be defeated if they were allowed to 
abbreviate their sentences by omitting subjects and verbs. The diaries 
should be examined by the teacher once every two weeks. 

Model 

Read literary models to the pupils; if possible such as Jo's journal 
in Little Women. 

VERSE-WRITING 

See verse-writing for third and fifth grades. 



APPENDIX 



APPENDIX 



SOURCES OF POEMS 



1. State Manual and Course of 

Study Superintendent of Public Instruction 

2. Special Day Program Superintendent of Public Instruction 

3. Poems (arranged by grades) State Board of Library Commissioners 

4. A Child's Garden of Verses Stevenson 

5 . Poems for Children Rossetti 

6. Poems of Childhood Field . 

7. Child Rhymes with Hoosier ' 

Pictures____ Riley 

8. The Posy Ring .Compilers — ^Wiggin & Smith 

9. The Approved Selection (8 

volumes) Compiler — Melvin Hix 

10. TeachingPoetry in the Grades __Haliburton & Smith 

1 1 . Little Rhymes for Little Readers W. Seegmiller 

12. Poems by Grades (2 volumes) __ Compilers — Harris & Gilbert 

13. Three Years With the Poets__^ -Compiler — Hazard 

14. Golden Numbers Compilers — Wiggin & Smith 

15. Child's Calendar Beautiful Compiler — R. K. Beeson 

All the books in this list with the exception of the first three may be 
found in the Preferred List. The publishing company and the price 
are given there. The first two on the list may be obtained from your 
commissioner or superintendent ; the third from the same source or directly 
from the State Library at Lansing. 



SOURCES OF STORIES 

1. How to Tell Stories Sara C. Bryant 

2. Stories to Tell Children Sara C. Bryant 

3. Story Telling Edna Lyman 

4. First Book of Stories Fanny Coe 

5. Fairy Tales Every Child Should Know H. W. Mabie 

6. The Blue Fairy Book Andrew Lang 

7. Household Tales Vol. I 1 Grimm 

8. Fairy Stories Andersen 

9. For the Children's Hour Bailey and Lewis 

10. For the Story-Teller Carolyn S. Bailey 

11. East O' the Sun and Vv^est O' the Moon Gudrun Thorne-Thomsen 

12. Norse Fairy Stories ^^__Dasent 

13. Nature Myths Flora Cooke 

14. The Book of Fables and Folk Stories H. E. Scudder 



136 

15. Uncle Remus J. C. Harris 

16. Aesop's Fables Stickney 

1 7 . Fifty Famous Stories Retold Baldwin 

18. Hero Tales Baldwin 

19. Heroes Every Child Should Know H. W. Mabie 

20. Wonder Book for Boys and Girls Nathaniel Hawthorne 

21. Myths Every Child Should Know H. W. Mabie 

22. Second Book of Stories Fanny Coe 

23. Famous Legends Emeline Crommelin 

24. Bedtime Stories Thornton Burgess 

25. Mother West Wind's Animal Friends, and 

other books Thornton Burgess 

26f The Tales of Benjamin Bunny, Peter Rabbit 

Squirrel Nutkin, and others Beatrix Potter 

27. In the Days of Giants A. F. Brown 

28. Iliad for Boys and Girls Church 

29. Odyssey for Boys and Girls Church 

30. Modern Americans Sanford and Owen 

31. Legends Every Child Should Know H. W. Mabie 

32. An Old, Old Story Book (Bible Stories) __-Eva M. Tappan 

33. Story Telling for Upper Grades Cross & Statler 

(Contains several Bible stories) 

34. Historic Girlhoods Holland 

All the books in this list may be found in the Preferred List. The pub- 
lishing company and the price are given there. 



BOOKS ON STORY-TELLING FOR TEACHERS 

Bailey, Carolyn S. — For the Story-Teller 

Bryant, Sara Cone — How to Tell Stories 

Gather, Katherine D. — Educating by Story-Telling 

Cowles, Julia Darrow — The Art of Story-Telling 

Cross and Statler — Story Telling for the Upper Grades 

Forbush, William Byron — Manual of Stories 

Lyman, Edna — Story Telling. What to Tell and How to Tell It 

Wyche, Richard T. — Some Great Stories and How to Tell Them 

All the books in this list may be found in the Preferred List. The pub- 
lishing company and the price are given there. 



BOOKS ON ART FOR TEACHERS 

Carpenter, Flora — Stories Pictures Tell (8 volumes) . 
Hurll — How to Show Pictures to Children 
Whitcomb — Young People's Story of Art 
Dillaway — Decoration of the School and Home 

With the exception of the fourth, the publisher and price of the above 
books may be found in the Preferred List. 



137 

PICTURE STUDY HELPS 

The following firms publish catalogues of pictures and their prices: 

Brown, G. P. & Company, Beverly, Massachusetts. 

Publishes copies of old and modern masterpieces, historical and 
biographical pictures in various sizes — ^from 3x334 at two for one cent 
to wall pictures. 

Cosmos Picture Company, 461 — 8th Avenue, New York City. 

Publishes pictures in two sizes — 6x8^ and 9x15 or 10x13. Ten 
of the smaller sized pictures may be procured for twenty-five cents 
and four of the larger ones for the same price. 

Detroit Publishing Company, Detroit. 

Publishes hundreds of photographs of American scenes and archi- 
tecture, and views from every country in the world. The American 
scenes include many Michigan views. Publishes also the "Thistle 
Publications" for the walls of the schoolroom ranging in price from one 
dollar to fifteen and eighteen dollars. 

Elson Art Publication Company, Inc., Belmont, Massachusetts. 

Publishes five-page picture studies at ten cents apiece. Study con- 
sists of a copy of a picture, a sketch of the artist's life, questions and 
suggestions for study, and quotations or a poem based on the same 
subject. Publishes also miniature copies of the great pictures, ten 
of which may be procured for twenty-five cents, and prints, 5 3^x8, 
at fifteen cents each. 

Foster Brothers, 4 Park Square, Boston, Massachusetts. 

Publishes pictures suitable for the wall, ranging in price from four to 
thirty-five dollars. 

National Art Supply Company, 228 Wabash Avenue, Chicago, Illinois. 
Pictures and sculpture reproduced from masterpieces for schoolroom 
decoration. 

Parker, C. M. Publishing Company, Taylorville, Illinois. 

Publishes picture study leaflets at eighteen cents per dozen. The 
studies include a reproduction of the picture, sketch of the artist's 
life, and suggestions for teaching. 

Perry Picture Company, Maiden, Massachusetts. 

Publishes copies of hundreds of masterpieces in various sizes ranging 
from 3x3 y^ at three-quarters of a cent each to large pictures for framing. 

Turner, Horace K. Company, 221 Columbus Avenue, Mass. i 

Publishes picture studies which may be procured by single studies or 
in bound volumes. Single studies are five cents apiece in orders of 
twenty-five cents or more. The study sets are thirty-five cents per 
volume of ten studies. The Turner Brown and Gray prints may be 
obtained in sizes ranging from 8x10 to 50x70. 



138 

BOOKS FOR THE TEACHER OF LANGUAGE 

English in the Country School, Barnes; Row, Peterson & Company 
Language Work in Elementary Schools, Leiper; Ginn & Company 
Standards in English, Mahoney; World Book Company 
What Literature Can Do for Me, Smith; Thompson, Brown & Company 



MORNING PRAYER 

Father, we thank Thee for the night, 
And for the pleasant morning light. 
For rest, and food, and loving care. 
And all that makes this day so fair. 



LibKHKT U^ (wUIMkjKtoo 



019 747 546 8 i 



